A 28-year-old Pennsylvania woman, Anigar Monsee, has been arrested on January 19, charged with four felony counts of aggravated cruelty to animals, following accusations of torturing animals for online popularity on YouTube, as reported by 6abc, NBC 10, and Patch.com.
The arrest was made after the Upper Darby Police Department was alerted to Monsee’s YouTube channel by the animal rights organization PETA. Monsee is alleged to have tortured and killed various animals, including rabbits, chickens, frogs, and pigeons, in videos posted over the past year.
According to an affidavit cited by NBC 10, authorities claim that Monsee sought more likes before inflicting harm on an animal, and some of her comments were reportedly sexually explicit.
Upon receiving a tip about the videos, PETA contacted the Upper Darby police, leading to Monsee’s arrest. Subsequently, Monsee purportedly admitted to the animal abuse while in custody.
YouTube’s community guidelines explicitly prohibit content that involves violence or abuse towards animals. A YouTube spokesperson stated to NBC 10, “Content that is violent or abusive toward animals is not allowed on YouTube, and we have terminated the channel in question.”
Kristen Rickman, a spokesperson for PETA, emphasized the importance of preventing such behavior, saying to 6abc, “The best we can do is just to honor them by making sure this kind of behavior does not continue, and that more animals aren’t made victims.”
Monsee is scheduled to appear in court for a preliminary hearing on February 5, according to court documents cited by the outlets.
