CNN
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The Dallas Police Division launched surveillance video and a photograph of an unidentified man they need to communicate to in regard to 2 tamarin monkeys who have been believed to be stolen from the zoo on Monday.
“Dallas Police are in search of the general public’s assist in figuring out the pictured particular person,” police wrote.
Within the surveillance video, the person could be seen strolling slowly down an almost empty zoo sidewalk, wanting backwards and forwards as he strikes. A second particular person additionally could be seen within the background, however that particular person walks in the wrong way.
Within the nonetheless picture, the person is carrying a navy blue hooded sweatshirt and a navy and pink beanie cap and is consuming a bag of Doritos.
The investigation comes after a sequence of suspicious animal incidents this month on the Dallas Zoo. The zoo believes two of its emperor tamarin monkeys have been stolen after they have been found lacking from their enclosure Monday and their habitat had been “deliberately compromised.”
“Emperor tamarin monkeys would probably keep near residence – the Zoo searched close to their habitat and throughout Zoo grounds and didn’t find them,” the zoo stated in a assertion Monday.
The Dallas Police Division stated its preliminary investigation discovered the habitat had been deliberately lower open and “it’s believed the animals have been deliberately taken from the enclosure.”
Earlier Monday, the zoo stated it might be closed for the day as a consequence of inclement climate. The closure was later prolonged by way of Wednesday as a consequence of an ice storm impacting the world, the zoo stated.
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 “uncommon” circumstances surrounding the dying of a vulture final week, in line 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 felony investigation after it was found that the fence round Nova’s enclosure had been “deliberately lower,” police stated.
Whereas the feline was discovered near her habitat later that day, zoo personnel additionally discovered an identical lower 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 started limiting some animals’ skill to go outdoors 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 dying “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 dying.
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.
