On Wednesday, Horry County Police responded to a call coming from 5 Keystone Lane near Myrtle Beach where the owner reported an animal attack, according to an incident report.
According to the report, the pet’s owner said that a monkey got loose and wandered into the next neighborhood, but was recovered and placed back into his cage. He added that particular monkey does wander free within the facility and does get loose from time to time, the report said.
The responding officer went back to the address of the incident and the victim said when she heard her dog barking, she then went outside to see why. She saw the small-sized monkey in her yard, according to the report.
The incident report said that the monkey lunged at her and bit her on the arm.
She said that once the monkey bit her, it reportedly lunged towards her chest, and then it fled the area.
The report said the officer did notice bite marks on the victim’s left arm.
The victim was transported to the hospital to receive treatment for minor injuries.
Rumors circulated that the monkey had escaped from T.I.G.E.R.S. preserve. Doc Antle, founder and director of the preserve issued the following statement:
“This is a strange story. However, for years, we have all read and heard accounts of animals on the loose. Perhaps people were confused by what they saw, but we really have no explanation. All of our animals are accounted for here at the [T.I.G.E.R.S] preserve.”
“There’s certainly a lot of speculation about the situation. And, it concerns us, too. But, I can tell you with certainty that this animal wasn’t one of ours.”
“With Myrtle Beach moving into a COVID-recovery, the area is seeing a huge surge of tourists visiting our area. We don’t have the answer but are very glad that the Myrtle Beach resident is safe and doing well.“