ORANGE CITY, Fla. (WESH) — It's not shenanigans, but it is monkey business for police in Orange City where a monkey is on the loose.
The animal was spotted at a fast food restaurant Wednesday morning, and there have been several sightings beginning last Friday.
“I'm like this cannot be possible, and I'm like I'm telling everybody, 'listen, there's a monkey-- a monkey,'” Kim Bialobos, shift manager at an Orange City Popeyes, said.
While making preparations at the drive-thru window, something caught her eye. She shared pictures she took as the very cheeky monkey cruised around before finally hopping over the fence separating the restaurant from a wooded area.
“He's a smart monkey ‘cause he stopped right here, and he looked over at the traffic, and he knew not to go that way,” Bialobos said.
“It's not every day you hear about a monkey on the loose,” a police officer said.
Orange City police say they started getting calls Friday, totaling a half dozen or more sightings in different areas of the city within a three-mile range or so. Apparently, the elusive creature is trying to make a monkey out of them.
“We would send someone out to that area, no luck, we can't find it, and it just kept going on. Several days throughout the several days,” they said.
Restaurant manager Bialobos says the monkey is pretty big.
“He looked very well groomed; he was very maintained. He looked healthy, he didn't look like a wild monkey,” the manager said.
Police are asking anyone who sees the monkey to immediately report it to them or FWC since that agency is also involved. They don't want anyone to approach or engage the animal.
“It could be dangerous, and we don't know that. So not to get near it, not to feed it,” they said.
No one has claimed they lost a pet. The nearest zoo and animal sanctuaries haven't notified the police that they're missing an animal. So far, it's mysterious monkey business.
Folks at that same Orange City Popeyes restaurant recently spotted a bear in the parking lot, so apparently, the area wildlife is drawn to chicken!
Orange City police say if you come in contact with a monkey, please contact FWC for further assistance.
The Wildlife Alert Hotline can be reached at 888-404-FWCC (888-404-3922).
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