Police find missing apes at private zoo - THE NATION THAILAND

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Police find missing apes at private zoo

 

Published on Aug 14, 2004

 

Forestry Police yesterday discovered 36 out of 41 orang-utans believed to

have disappeared from a private zoo in Bangkok.

" The 36 were relocated to another zone within Safari World and police were

not notified during past inspections, " Commander Col Sawaek Pinsinchai said.

 

The other five have been verified as dying from apparent natural causes some

months ago, he said.

The 41 were among 110 orang-utans impounded at the open zoo pending an

investigation into how the zoo came to possess so many examples of the

endangered species.

Sawaek said he was preparing to transfer the apes to wildlife research

stations in Ratchaburi and Chon Buri.

Zoo assistant manager Vincent Chua said he was surprised by news reports

that Sawaek had claimed the 41 primates had vanished.

" The orang-utans were kept at the zoo all the time. I don't know why police

said some were missing, " he said.

Sirinart Sirisunthorn

The Nation