Lemur stolen from Santa Ana Zoo located at Newport Beach hotel

Wednesday, August 1, 2018
Lemur stolen from Santa Ana Zoo located at Newport Beach hotel
Lemur stolen from Santa Ana Zoo located at Newport Beach hotelA lemur stolen from the Santa Ana Zoo last weekend is back in captivity.

SANTA ANA, Calif. (KABC) -- A lemur stolen from the Santa Ana Zoo last weekend is back in captivity.

According to police, someone stole a ring-tailed lemur named Isaac and released two monkeys onto zoo property by using bolt-cutters to slice through the outer perimeter fencing of the zoo as well as the fencing of two primate enclosures.

Someone cut through the outer perimeter fencing of the zoo to steal the lemur.
Santa Ana Police Department

While investigating the break-in, the Santa Ana Police Department received a call from the Newport Police Department regarding the missing lemur, who had been located in front of a hotel in that city.

Police said someone dropped off a plastic crate containing Isaac at the Newport Beach hotel.

A note left on the crate indicated that the lemur was property of the Santa Ana Zoo.

A note left on the crate indicated that the lemur was property of the Santa Ana Zoo, police said.
Santa Ana Police Department

The damage to zoo property was more than $1,000 and the stolen lemur was valued at $3,000.

Isaac, 32, is not only the second-oldest ring-tailed lemur in North America, he's also on the endangered species list, making the theft a federal crime.

The motive for stealing Isaac remains unclear, according to police.

Zoo staff was able to recapture the other escaped monkeys and said it plans to review security procedures.

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