Monkeys found, returned to Dallas zoo

Monkeys found, returned to Dallas Zoo

The two emperor tamarin monkeys, which were retrieved from the Dallas Zoo this week, were found Tuesday in a closet in an empty house in Lancaster, about 15 miles south of the zoo, authorities said.

The monkeys – small animals with distinctive mustache-like whiskers native to parts of the Amazon – were reported missing Monday after their enclosure was apparently “deliberately compromised,” the zoo said.

Her disappearance was the latest in a series of bizarre incidents involving breached enclosures or habitats linked to the escape and deaths of other animals at the zoo in January.

The Dallas Police Department said they along with other local authorities located the animals just before 5 p.m. after receiving a tip that they may be at an abandoned home. When authorities arrived, “the house was empty,” police said, noting that no arrests had been made and the investigation was ongoing.

“The monkeys were returned to the zoo,” police said. The animals would be examined by veterinarians, the zoo said.

“We are incredibly excited,” said a zoo spokesman of the tamarin rescue. The facility said it has “significantly increased” the number of cameras on site, as well as doubling security guards and night staff in response to disturbances to its animals.

NYC sees end of absence of snowfall

NEW YORK — After almost a year without any measurable snowfall, the snow drought in New York City ended Wednesday after a slight dusting of the wintry mix.

According to the National Weather Service, 0.4 inches of snow was recorded in Central Park, ending the city’s 328-day snow-free streak. The city was four days away from breaking a record of 332 days without snow in 2020.

It was also the latest date in winter that the city could see snow. The previous record date was January 29, 1973. That winter had the lowest snowfall on record at 2.8 inches.

Records began in 1869, the weather service said. A tenth of an inch of accumulation is considered “measurable.”

The snow comes a day after the city has ridden with above-average temperatures throughout January.

“We are in for one of the warmest Januarys in New York history,” Bob Larson, a senior weather forecaster at AccuWeather, told the Daily News on Sunday.

However, the city could start a new series. This week will see a cold snap with temperatures dropping into the single digits, although no additional precipitation is expected until next week.

The shooter is said to have been mentally ill

The man fatally shot by police after entering a Target store in Omaha, Nebraska, armed with an AR-15 rifle had received the gun at a Cabela sporting goods store just four days earlier, police said on Wednesday with Nobody else was hurt.

Court records show the man, identified by police as Joseph Jones, 32, of suburban Omaha in Douglas County, where Omaha is located, had no prior felony convictions. Records also indicate that he had no prior documented contact with the city’s police force.

He entered the store around noon Tuesday, where police said he fired multiple rounds, causing shoppers and workers to run for exits and hide in toilet stalls. Along with the rifle, he had 13 loaded rifle magazines with ammunition.

Jones’ uncle, Larry Derksen Jr., said his nephew had schizophrenia and his mental illness isolated him.

“My nephew went to Target. I think he had no intention of hurting anyone. He fired a few rounds,” Derksen told KETV-TV. “He had an AR-15 before the police got there. If he had intended to kill someone, he would have done it. He would have had time for that.”

Kidnapper shoots himself in front of the police

SALEM, Ore. — The suspect in an Oregon violent kidnapping — a man who spent little time behind bars for a similar crime in Nevada — killed two men before being cornered by officers and fatally shot himself, police said on Wednesday with.

Benjamin Obadiah Foster, 36, died in a hospital Tuesday night, hours after shooting himself while hiding in a crawl space under a house in Grants Pass. In a press conference the next day, police officers revealed details of the intense manhunt for Foster, including a search for the bodies of the two men in a rural area north of Grants Pass.

Richard Lee Barron Jr. and Donald Owen Griffith were killed sometime between Monday afternoon and Tuesday morning, Oregon State Police Captain Kyle Kennedy said.

The men lived together in the unincorporated community of Sunny Valley and appeared unaware of Foster, who police said made a gruesome scene and stole some of the victims’ belongings, including their dog.

Authorities came to the neighborhood with guns and at least one armored vehicle and searched the home where they found the woman last week. Officers found no one at first, but then they sent a robot from the sheriff’s department into the crawl space and found signs that Foster was hiding there. His presence was confirmed by a camera, Grants Pass Police Chief Warren Hensman said.

Officers expected a shootout, but instead Foster shot himself in the head, according to Hensman. Foster was reported to have been unconscious and still holding a .45 caliber handgun while pinned under the house, and officers had to remove floorboards to pull him out.