A Mississippi mother shot and killed an escaped monkey in her backyard on Sunday, fearing it might threaten her children or neighbors.
The shooting happened days after a group of rhesus monkeys escaped from a truck after it crashed. Authorities had warned that the escaped primates could be dangerous.
From The Associated Press:
Jessica Bond Ferguson said she was alerted early Sunday by her 16-year-old son who said he thought he had seen a monkey running in the yard outside their home near Heidelberg, Mississippi. She got out of bed, grabbed her firearm and her cellphone and stepped outside where she saw the monkey about 60 feet (18 meters) away.
Bond Ferguson said she and other residents had been warned that the escaped monkeys carried diseases so she fired her gun.
“I did what any other mother would do to protect her children,” Bond Ferguson, who has five children ranging in age from 4 to 16, told The Associated Press. “I shot at it and it just stood there, and I shot again, and he backed up and that’s when he fell.”
The Jasper County Sheriff’s Office confirmed in a social media post that a homeowner had found one of the monkeys on their property Sunday morning but said the office didn’t have any details. The Mississippi Department of Wildlife, Fisheries, and Parks took possession of the monkey, the sheriff’s office said.
Before Bond Ferguson had gone out the door, she had called the police and was told to keep an eye on the monkey. But she said worried that if the monkey got away it would threaten children at another house.
“If it attacked somebody’s kid, and I could have stopped it, that would be a lot on me,” said Bond Ferguson, a 35-year-old professional chef. “It’s kind of scary and dangerous that they are running around, and people have kids playing in their yards.”
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Mississippi mom shoots dead monkey that escaped from overturned truck to protect her children: ‘I did what any other mother would do’ https://t.co/cZGT66Pbc6 pic.twitter.com/cW6hVTNAQt
— New York Post (@nypost) November 3, 2025
At least three of the monkeys escaped during the crash, while the rest were killed in the accident. This prompted an extensive search by law enforcement and wildlife officials. Two monkeys remain at large, NBC News reported. The monkeys were being transported from Tulane University in Louisiana for research purposes.
One of the monkeys that escaped after a truck crash in Mississippi last week was shot and killed early Sunday by a homeowner who said she feared for her children’s safety — AP pic.twitter.com/EMYNifF9Zx
— Breaking911 (@Breaking911) November 3, 2025
The authorities issued warnings to residents in the Heidelberg area about the potential disease risk posed by the monkeys. However, Tulane University later stated that the monkeys were pathogen-free and not a health risk.
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