TOKYO: Local authorities hunting for a gang of monkeys who attacked plus wounded nearly 50 people in western Japan have caught and killed among the marauding primates, an official said on Wed (Jul 27).
The male simian was seized while roaming the reasons of a high school within Yamaguchi city — but it may not be the finish of the furry, rotating tale, with other monkeys feared to be at large.
City authorities have been trying designed for weeks to track down the vicious gang that have made national head lines by assaulting occupants with mostly mild scratches and attacks.
On Tuesday evening, specially entrusted hunters shot the monkey with a tranquiliser gun and eventually caught it near the lake on the college premises, an official at the local agricultural division told AFP.
After identifying it as the same pet responsible for one of the assaults, the monkey was put down, he said. It had an estimated age of four plus was around half a metre tall.
Patrols were under way in Yamaguchi since the attacks upon adults and kids began around three days ago.
But with 49 people wounded as of Tuesday midday and fresh strike reports coming in, the search is still upon.
“Eyewitnesses explain monkeys of different dimensions, and even after the catch, we’ve been getting reviews of new attacks, ” said the city public, who declined to become named.
Japan macaques are seen commonly across large regions, and are an infestation in some areas, consuming crops and even getting into homes.
But the spate of episodes in Yamaguchi is unusual, with some residents telling nearby media that they are right now carrying umbrellas plus tree-cutting scissors to defend themselves.