(Warning: The allegations of animal abuse made by prosecutors may be disturbing to read. Discretion is advised.)
A Prineville man has been indicted for allegedly administering an online animal abuse group which included showing the torture, mutilation and murder of monkeys.
The Department of Justice announced that David Christopher Noble, 48, is charged with conspiring to engage in animal crushing and creating and distributing animal crush videos and creating animal crush videos.
He’s also charged with illegally possessing a firearm after being dishonorably discharged from the U.S. Air Force.
RELATED: Bend man with criminal past indicted on cocaine, silencer possession charges
The DOJ says that between at least January 19, 2022, and February 2, 2023, Noble allegedly conspired with others to view, encourage, and fund animal crush videos as part of an online group using an encrypted chat app.
Prosecutors claim Noble “paid for the creation of and celebrated videos depicting the torture, sexually-sadistic mutilation, and murder of adult and juvenile monkeys.” The DOJ also says Noble managed the group’s membership and repeatedly changed the group’s name to avoid getting caught by law enforcement.
According to the Cornell University Law School, animal crushing is “means actual conduct in which one or more living non-human mammals, birds, reptiles, or amphibians is purposely crushed, burned, drowned, suffocated, impaled, or otherwise subjected to serious bodily injury.”
Noble was an Air Force officer who was dismissed in 2006 and ordered to serve six months in military custody following a court martial for fraud and an unprofessional relationship. The DOJ said that despite this, Noble allegedly to have illegally possessed multiple firearms, including a Colt M4 carbine assault rifle.
The DOJ said Noble moved from Prineville to Henderson, Nevada, in January after a federal search warrant was executed on his Prineville residence. He was arrested in Henderson on Tuesday and made his first court appearance Wednesday.
Noble will be transferred to the District of Oregon.
He faces up to seven years in federal prison and three years’ supervised release over the creation of creating animal crush videos. Illegally possessing a firearm as a dishonorably discharged person is punishable by up to 15 years in federal prison and three years supervised release.
