Twelve squirrel monkeys stolen overnight from zoo
Authorities are investigating to see if the incident is connected to another robbery of monkeys from the Dallas Zoo.
Twelve squirrel monkeys were stolen after a late-night break in at a zoo in Louisiana.
The brazen thief targeted a local zoo in Broussard called ‘Zoosiana.’ Just before midnight on Saturday night, the thief broke into small primate facility and snatched the monkeys.
Zoosiana reported the theft to the Broussard Police Department, who are currently investigating the theft.
‘The remaining squirrel monkeys have been carefully assessed by both the Zoosiana veterinarian and animal care team, and there are no other apparent issues affecting their health or well being,’ the zoo said in a statement posted on Facebook. ‘All other animals are accounted for and appear to have been undisturbed.’
Broussard Police Chief Vance Olivier told KATC that police were still reviewing surveillance footage to identify a suspect, who will be facing burglary charges.
The zoo was closed the following Sunday due to severe cold weather in the state.
Just days earlier, two tamarin monkeys were stolen from the Dallas Zoo, about six hours away from Broussard. Authorities are reportedly investigating to see if the two incidents are connected.
The monkeys were eventually located one day later in an abandoned house in Lancaster, Texas. Police are still investigating the incident, and have identified a suspect wanted for questioning in the matter.
The monkey theft was only the latest in a series of troubling incidents at the Dallas Zoo. Earlier in January, the zoo declared a ‘code blue’ when a clouded leopard was found to have escaped its habitat.
The leopard, a four-year-old cat named Nova, was eventually found nearby after an hours-long search. Shortly after she was found, officials announced that they believe the wiring on her exhibit was intentionally sabotaged.
On the same day, investigators found that a langur monkey exhibit was sabotaged in a similar manner. None of the monkeys escaped.
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