Kokomo woman takes plea deal in federal case involving ‘animal crush’ videos
KOKOMO, Ind. (WISH) — A Kokomo woman has taken a plea deal for federal charges of animal crushing.
Krystal Scott was charged last year for creating “animal crush” videos, showing the torture and graphic killing of animals.
In the plea deal, Scott admits killing five dogs, five cats and 11 unborn kittens.
Her maximum sentence is up to seven years of imprisonment, a $250,000 fine and a term of no more than three years of supervised release following imprisonment.
Scott and federal prosecutors have not yet reached an agreement on a recommended sentence.
A sentencing date has not yet been set.
Animals found on social media, then killed on video
Court documents released last year state that Scott would acquire the animals on social media under false pretenses. Investigators say Scott received a pregnant cat and a kitten, telling the owner “she would spoil the cat,” according to records.
“I’ll be killing a pregnant Siamese and a kitten later on today,” she wrote in a private Instagram group, posting as “real.serial.dog.killer.dude2” on the platform. Investigators listed several similar variations of that username in court documents.
A picture and an 11-second video were posted online.
“Little s*** was still alive so rehanged it,” Instagram user “realserialdogkillerdude34” wrote about the video.
Scott’s plea deal involves admitting to asphyxiating the pregnant cat and kitten by placing ligatures around their necks. Court documents state she then removed the unborn kittens from the mother’s body and posted images on social media of her crushing them.
Internet detectives get involved
Police in Kokomo first began investigating Scott in May 2020 after receiving tips, but officers were unable to connect her to the crimes at the time.
Shortly after that, an online activist group dedicated to catching animal abusers contacted the Boise (Idaho) Police Department after finding pictures and videos online.
A tipster from London also helped investigators in the case.
Ultimately, a search warrant and a track of the IP led investigators to Scott’s residence.
An FBI raid occurred in mid-July 2020, with investigators saying numerous animal parts and skulls were found.
Scott spoke with with detectives at the time, saying “she claims that her ‘good side’ loves cats and dogs, but that her ‘bad side’ tells her to commit acts of animal cruelty including killing animals by strangulation and other means,” according to court documents.
A neighbor told News 8 he found a decapitated dog in the area months before the raid.
“It had been decapitated. The belly was slit up and down,” Brian Foster said. “After I drove down the road and I came back, the head was in the road and it wasn’t there when I first drove by.”
