Bartaffen-Theft explained - Alleged thieves of the Leipzig Zoo barbary apes identified
Approximately four months after the theft of a Barbary macaque from Zoo Leipzig, the police have located the suspected perpetrators. It involves a group that was already under investigation for other serious crimes. During related searches, mobile phone pictures were found that showed the suspects with the Barbary macaque. The accused are currently in pre-trial detention, according to the police.
The fifteen-year-old female Barbary macaque Ruma was stolen from its enclosure on Easter Sunday night. Four days later, a jogger discovered the animal on a tree in the Leipzig district of Reudnitz. A Zoo team was dispatched and managed to capture the monkey, which had meanwhile escaped to a nearby multi-family house, using a net. The monkey was doing well. It is believed that it was released near the discovery site at the time.
The Police are investigating due to suspicion of a particularly serious theft. We now need to clarify how many people from the circle of suspects were actually involved in the break-in at the zoo and the Barbary macaque theft, a spokeswoman said.
The suspected perpetrators of the Barbary macaque theft at Leipzig Zoo hail from Saxony, specifically in Germany. The level of criminality in this case is significant, as it involves a group previously under investigation for serious crimes. During a police raid related to the theft, mobile phone evidence surfaced, showing the suspects with the stolen macaque. The investigation is ongoing, with authorities seeking to determine the exact number of individuals from the suspect circle involved in the zoo break-in and monkey theft.
