FL’s ‘Monkey Whisperer’ Faces New Animal Trafficking Charges: US DOJ

MANATEE COUNTY, FL — A Florida man known as the “The Monkey Whisperer” faces new animal trafficking charges, according to a U.S. Department of Justice news release.

Jimmy Wayne Hammonds, 61, of Parrish and his brother, Johny ‘D-Lane’ Hammonds, 59, of St. Petersburg was charged with conspiracy to violate the Lacey Act and Lacey Act trafficking.

If convicted on all counts, the brothers each face a maximum penalty of 10 years in federal prison.

• Also Read: ‘Monkey Whisperer’ Sentenced For Trafficking Protected Primates: DOJ

The siblings conspired with each other to sell wildlife, and transported and sold marmosets in violation of federal and state laws, the DOJ said.

In 2022, Jimmy Wayne Hammonds, who is called the “The Monkey Whisperer,” was sentenced to five years’ probation, including eight months home confinement, for trafficking protected primates and violating federal wildlife laws, including the Lacey Act and the Endangered Species Act.