Escaped Monkey from Crash Finds NJ Refuge Home

A rhesus macaque named Forrest, who escaped a chaotic truck crash in rural Mississippi last fall, has found a permanent home at a New Jersey wildlife refuge after spending days evading capture.

The incident unfolded on October 28, when a truck carrying 21 monkeys for biomedical research overturned on Interstate 59, just north of Heidelberg. Officials reported that five monkeys died during the immediate aftermath as law enforcement officers searched the area. Body camera footage captured the pandemonium, with escaped primates scrambling from their wooden crates across the grassy interstate median and toward oncoming cars and semitrailers.

Forrest, a young adult, was among three monkeys that initially eluded officers at the scene. The other two were later shot and killed by local civilians, who stated they acted to protect their families and neighborhoods. Forrest remained at large for about a week, surviving in the vicinity of the crash site until a nearby resident spotted him. Workers from the company responsible for transporting the monkeys then captured him without incident, according to officials.

Authorities had warned residents throughout the search to avoid approaching the...