Dallas Zoo believes 2 of its monkeys had been stolen after their habitat was ‘deliberately compromised.’ It follows a string of suspicious exercise | CNN

CNN
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After a collection of suspicious animal occasions this month, the Dallas Zoo believes two of its emperor tamarin monkeys have been stolen after they had been found lacking from their enclosure Monday and their habitat had been “deliberately compromised.”

“Emperor tamarin monkeys would doubtless keep near house – the Zoo searched close to their habitat and throughout Zoo grounds and didn’t find them,” the zoo stated in a statement Monday.

The Dallas Police Division stated its preliminary investigation discovered the habitat had been deliberately minimize open and “it’s believed the animals had been deliberately taken from the enclosure.”

That is the fourth time this month that the zoo has found its animals or their enclosures might have been tampered with, together with the “unusual” circumstances surrounding the loss of life of a vulture final week, in keeping with the zoo.

The string of occasions started January 13 when a clouded leopard named Nova disappeared, prompting the zoo to shut as they looked for the animal. Dallas Police opened a legal investigation after it was found that the fence round Nova’s enclosure had been “deliberately minimize,” police stated.

Whereas the feline was discovered near her habitat later that day, zoo personnel additionally discovered an identical minimize had been made to the enclosure of some langur monkeys. Regardless of the brand new escape route, not one of the monkeys left their habitat, the zoo stated. Police stated on the time that it was “unknown if the 2 incidents are associated.”

Following the incidents, the zoo put in extra safety cameras, greater than doubled its in a single day safety personnel, elevated its in a single day staffing, and commenced limiting some animals’ skill to go exterior in a single day, President and CEO Gregg Hudson stated.

However lower than two weeks after the primary discoveries, a vulture named Pin was discovered lifeless in his habitat. Hudson referred to as the chook’s loss of life “suspicious” and stated “an uncommon wound and accidents” indicated Pin didn’t die from pure causes.

The zoo is providing a $10,000 reward for data resulting in the arrest and indictment of a suspect within the vulture’s loss of life.

Dallas police are investigating all 4 incidents. A spokesperson stated final week that the division is collaborating with US Fish and Wildlife on the investigations.