12 squirrel monkeys stolen from a Louisiana zoo
That’s some real monkey business.
Twelve squirrel monkeys were stolen from a Louisiana zoo after it was broken into over the weekend, the facility said.
The monkeys were taken from Zoosiana in Broussard just before midnight Saturday, the zoo said Monday.
“Our facility was broken into shortly before midnight on Saturday, January 28th. The individual targeted facilities of smaller primates and specifically compromised the Squirrel Monkey exhibit,” Zoosiana wrote in a Facebook post.
Zoosiana didn’t share how many squirrel monkeys were in the exhibit before 12 were taken but noted that the remaining animals were checked by a veterinarian and animal care team and were in good health.
“All other animals are accounted for and appear to have been undisturbed,” Zoosiana said, adding that the zoo was closed Sunday due to weather, not the theft.
Zoo officials said they’re working with local, state and federal agencies to try to locate the missing monkeys.
As their investigation unfolds, authorities in Dallas, Texas, continue to investigate a series of odd incidents involving missing zoo animals, causing staff to believe someone has been tampering with the animals.
On Monday, two tamarin monkeys mysteriously disappeared. Staff at the zoo said their cages appeared to have been ” intentionally compromised.”
The monkeys were found Tuesday inside an abandoned home. Officials have released a photo of a man whom investigators are looking to speak to about the animals.
Last month, a 4-year-old clouded leopard named Nova disappeared from her enclosure, causing the zoo to shut down for a day as staffers searched for the feline. She was found hours later, and police said someone had used a tool to cut open the fencing of her habitat.
Investigators later discovered a similar opening in a habitat of langur monkeys, but none of them escaped.
About a week later on Jan. 21, zoo staffers found an endangered vulture named Pin dead. The zoo said the vulture had suffered “a wound” and believed his death was not from natural causes.
Following the vulture’s death, the zoo installed additional security cameras with night vision and added additional security guards overnight.
