Docs Say Man Jailed in Dallas Zoo Monkey Case Says He Would Do It Again

DALLAS — (AP) — A 24-year-old man now linked to an unusual series of crimes that forced the Dallas Zoo to search for missing animals told police that after he stole two monkeys from their enclosure, he took them to a city park . light rail system to escape, court records show.

Davion Irwin also said he loves animals and that if released from prison he would steal more, the documents say.

Irwin, who remained in jail on $25,000 bail on Tuesday, was arrested last week after asking questions at an aquarium in downtown Dallas about the animals there. He is charged with six counts of animal cruelty and two counts of burglary. The lawyer listed in court records in favor of Irvine did not respond to a request for comment.

Irwin told police that on the night of January 29, he waited until dark, jumped over the fence to enter the zoo grounds, cut the metal mesh of the fence, and took two emperor tamarins, according to an arrest warrant affidavit. He then boarded the city tram and headed for the empty house where he said he kept his animals.

On a public tip, police found the monkeys, named Bella and Finn, on January 31, the day after they were discovered missing, in a vacant house in Lancaster, a suburb of Dallas, about 15 miles (24 km) south of the zoo. . There were also several cats and pigeons in the house, in addition to a dead fish feeder and fish food, that disappeared from the staff-only area in early January, but no theft was reported at the time, the affidavit says. .

According to police, Irwin has been charged with two bizarre events that happened at the zoo over the course of weeks and is linked to another. While capturing the monkeys, Irwin faces one count of burglary and six counts of animal cruelty – three for each monkey. He has also been charged with burglary in connection with the escape of a clouded leopard named Nova, who went missing on January 13. A cut was found in her enclosure and the zoo was closed as the search began. Later that day, she was found near her habitat.

Irwin told investigators that he wanted to take Nova away, but was only able to pet her before she climbed onto the roof of her enclosure, the affidavit says.

Police said they linked Irwin to the cutting of a langur enclosure discovered after Nova’s disappearance, but he was not charged with it. None of the Langur monkeys escaped.

In the days leading up to the capture of emperor tamarins, a man aroused suspicion at the zoo by asking questions not only about the movement and care of such monkeys, but also about an escaped clouded leopard, the sworn statement said. He was also seen entering the staff building near the monkey enclosure.

After the monkeys were found missing on January 30, police released a photo and video from the zoo of a man they said they wanted to talk to about the missing monkeys. The man in the images, who police later said was Irvine, caused a tip that led police to the empty house where the monkeys were found on January 31. According to the affidavit, the tip came from a caller who said that several church members acknowledged the find. the person in the images as someone who frequented the vacant house owned by the church.

Police arrested Irwin Thursday a few blocks from the Dallas World Aquarium after he asked questions about the animals in the aquarium and a worker recognized him from the news.

Police said they were still investigating, but Irwin was not linked to the suspicious death of an endangered vulture at the zoo in January.

Meanwhile, Louisiana police announced the arrest on Tuesday of a 61-year-old man in the case of 12 squirrel monkeys who were found missing on January 29 in their enclosure at the zoo in Broussard, about 60 miles (96 km) west of Baton Rouge. Police said the missing monkeys have not yet been found.