30 Infected Lab Monkeys Escape from Facility in Puerto Rico

SAN JUAN – About 30 lab monkeys infected with different viruses and used for scientific research escaped over the weekend from a facility in Puerto Rico when someone broke the lock on their cage, police said.

One or more unidentified individuals broke the lock on one of the cages at the Caribbean Primate Research Center, or CPRC, at the University of Puerto Rico Medical Sciences Campus outside San Juan, police said in a statement.

The cage’s padlock was removed and the chain cut, allowing about 30 Rhesus monkeys to escape from the CPRC.

The Department of Natural and Environmental Resources, or DRNA, was notified of the incident so it can assist in recovering the animals, police said, adding that investigators were trying to determine who vandalized the facility.

The animals remained on the CPRC’s grounds and some have already been captured, police said.