The Jasper County Sheriff’s Office, which “eliminated” five of the escaped 40-pound monkeys, initially said the driver of the truck told authorities the primates were dangerous, a threat to humans and required personal protective equipment (PPE) to handle.<\/p>\n
The university later confirmed to Fox News Digital the monkeys in question were not carrying any diseases and had received recent checkups at Tulane before they left the facility, confirming they were pathogen-free.<\/p>\n
Tulane<\/a> officials said 13 of the monkeys remained caged during the wreck, which happened north of Heidelberg, and are now in the possession of their owner en route to their intended destination.<\/p>\n One monkey was photographed after the crash. It is unclear if it was one of the five “eliminated” by the authorities. (Courtesy of Scotty Ray Report)<\/p>\n FROM \u2018HOMICIDE CAPITAL\u2019 TO SAFER STREETS? MEMPHIS AREA SEES POLICING PUSH<\/a><\/p>\n The identity of the owner and “original destination” were not released.<\/p>\n “The transport of research animals is a common occurrence and usually requires legally binding contracts that prevent the involved parties from disclosing information, both for the safety of the animals and to protect the parties’ proprietary information,” the university wrote in a statement.<\/p>\n White Coat Waste Project told Fox News Digital it has been working to cut taxpayer\u00a0funding for Tulane\u2019s primate lab for years, and right after the crash, followed the monkeys and the money allegedly straight to the NIH.<\/p>\n Monkeys could be seen next to crates after the crash, which left five animals dead. (Photo courtesy of Scotty Ray Report)<\/p>\n TRUCK DRIVER ARRESTED ON HOMICIDE CHARGES IN FIERY WRECK THAT KILLED 8 FAMILY MEMBERS<\/a><\/p>\n “Every year, the NIH ships $35 million of our hard-earned tax dollars to Tulane so it can breed thousands of primates, torture them in wasteful and abusive experiments, and truck them off to other labs,” White Coat Waste Project senior vice president Justin Goodman wrote in a statement. “Nearly 6,000 monkeys are locked up in Tulane\u2019s taxpayer-funded facility where the primates are isolated in tiny cages and infected with some of the deadliest pathogens on earth\u2014like anthrax, botulism, monkeypox, COVID, and AIDS-like viruses.”<\/p>\n The organization alleges in a recent experiment at Tulane\u2019s primate center, human nipples<\/a> were sewn onto male monkeys.<\/p>\n “Despite promising White Coat Waste that he’d end all primate tests, NIH Director Jay Bhattacharya just renewed millions in\u00a0funding\u00a0for Tulane’s torture lab,” Goodman wrote. “We\u2019re urging [Health and Human Services] Secretary\u00a0[Robert F.] Kennedy\u00a0to follow the lead of the first Trump administration and shut down government primate labs and retire the survivors to sanctuary. The way to end Tulane\u2019s monkey business is simple: Stop the money. Stop the madness.”<\/p>\n Three rhesus monkeys remain on the loose, with authorities cautioning residents the primates are “aggressive.” (Jasper County Sheriff’s Department, Mississippi)<\/p>\n EXPLOSION CAUGHT ON CAMERA ROCKS BEACH TOWN AFTER HIT-AND-RUN DRIVER HITS GAS LINE, FIREFIGHTERS INJURED<\/a><\/p>\n An HHS spokesperson told Fox News Digital the NIH is currently subject to a court injunction stemming from ongoing litigation related to the previously canceled Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) grants, which prevents the immediate termination of the Tulane grant.\u00a0<\/p>\n The HHS clarified the grant has not been newly renewed; the spokesperson said what has been described as “renewals” are continuing disbursements under the original grant.<\/p>\n People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals<\/a> (PETA) senior science advisor for primate campaigns Dr. Lisa Jones-Engel called on authorities to demand full necropsies and veterinary records for the monkeys killed in the crash and to make the results public.<\/p>\n “Tulane has locked down information after the crash\u2014refusing to say who owned the monkeys, what they were being used for, or what pathogens they carried. Inside sources have told us the monkeys were actually not headed to Florida,” Jones-Engel wrote in a statement Thursday to Fox News Digital. “PETA has requested that local authorities be provided with necropsies and veterinary records, and we are also going to the [Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)] because this is fundamentally a public health issue.”<\/p>\n Debris was seen near the scene of the Mississippi crash, as authorities tracked down the animals. (Courtesy of Scotty Ray Report)<\/p>\n COLLEGE STUDENT\u2019S PARENTS KILLED, SIBLINGS INJURED IN CRASH ON SCHOOL DROP-OFF TRIP<\/a><\/p>\n She alleged Tulane National Primate Research Center\u2019s colony harbors diseases including Chagas, Valley Fever, West Nile virus and diarrheal pathogens, while the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is aware imported monkeys have arrived in U.S. primate facilities carrying tuberculosis and Burkholderia pseudomallei.<\/p>\n “Tulane’s claim that secrecy protects \u2018animal safety\u2019 is obscene,” Jones-Engel wrote. “These animals were shot dead. Tulane\u2019s primate center is funded by taxpayers, and transparency is a matter of public health, not proprietary privilege. Passing the buck to highway patrol or state wildlife officers is an outright dodge. Local responders are not equipped to assess zoonotic risks\u2014that responsibility lies with Tulane and with the CDC. By hiding behind contracts and weak paperwork, Tulane is shielding its dangerous primate center and protecting the notorious monkey experimentation industry\u00a0from scrutiny at the expense of community safety.”<\/p>\n Though the university sent a team of animal care experts to assist, officials emphasized the monkeys were not being transported by Tulane, not owned by Tulane, and not in Tulane\u2019s custody at the time of the crash.<\/p>\n PETA wrote a letter to the CDC Friday, requesting the CDC “acknowledge its responsibility, increase transparency, and protect communities from the dangers posed not only by the primate trade but also by the presence of entrenched pathogens in U.S. primate facilities.”<\/p>\n![\"One](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/monkey-3.png\")
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