The saga of the escaped lab monkeys in Mississippi has taken a more gruesome turn. Over the weekend, a woman encountered one of the escapees and shot it dead.
The Associated Press reported Sunday that 35-year-old Jessica Bond Ferguson killed the monkey soon after it approached her property. The slain animal was one of three rhesus monkeys still on the loose following a truck crash last week. Though the escaped monkeys are not believed to be infectious, contrary to initial reports, authorities still warn that they could be aggressive and a danger to people.
“I did what any other mother would do to protect her children,” Bond Ferguson, a mother of five, told the AP. “I shot at it and it just stood there, and I shot again, and he backed up and that’s when he fell.”
The great primate escape
Last Tuesday, a truck carrying the monkeys—21 in total—overturned on highway I59 near mile marker 117, close to the town of Heidelberg. The monkeys were being transported from Tulane University’s National Biomedical Research Center but reportedly don’t belong to the university and were being shipped to other research facilities.
Eight of the monkeys escaped from the crash, five of which were euthanized by officials from the Jasper County Sheriff’s Department by the end of the afternoon. Early on, authorities reported that only one monkey remained on the lam, though they later revised that number to three. The department also initially reported that the monkeys were carrying several diseases, including hepatitis C and covid-19, purportedly based on testimony from the truck driver. Tulane University, however, later told Gizmodo that the monkeys were not infected by anything.
According to Bond Ferguson, her 16-year-old son was the first to spot the escaped monkey early Sunday morning running around outside their home near Heidelberg. Having heard the original reports that the monkeys were diseased, she called police, then grabbed her firearm and went out. She was reportedly told to keep an eye on the monkey but feared that the animal would run away and potentially harm other nearby residents.
“If it attacked somebody’s kid, and I could have stopped it, that would be a lot on me,” said Bond Ferguson. “It’s kind of scary and dangerous that they are running around, and people have kids playing in their yards.”
More out there
On its social media page Sunday, the Sheriff’s Department reported that a homeowner had found the monkey on their property, though it provided no further details about the encounter. The monkey’s body was reportedly collected by officials from the state’s Department of Wildlife, Fisheries, and Parks.
Two other lab monkeys are still on the loose. And while they may not pose a disease threat, officials continue to warn that the animals can be aggressive and that people should avoid attempting to make contact.
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