by Cedric ‘BIG CED’ Thornton
November 3, 2025
Jessica Bond Ferguson feared for the safety of her children and neighbors when the monkey was spotted in her yard
An escaped monkey was killed by a Mississippi woman, Jessica Bond Ferguson, after one of her children informed her that it was running in the yard outside of their home.
According to The Associated Press, Bond Ferguson went inside her home to grab a firearm out of fear that the animal might attack one of her children. Once she went outside the house, after grabbing a gun and a mobile phone, she noticed the monkey running about 60 feet away. Thinking of the safety of her children and neighbors, she shot at the monkey, and she said it just stood there, so she fired again. This time, the monkey was hit and he fell to the ground.
“I did what any other mother would do to protect her children,” Bond Ferguson told the media outlet. “I shot at it and it just stood there, and I shot again, and he backed up and that’s when he fell.”
The incident took place near Heidelberg, Mississippi.
Bond Ferguson stated that before the shooting, she and other people in the area were warned about monkeys that escaped from a truck that had crashed. They were told that the animals carried diseases. Reflecting on the warning prompted her to protect her children.
“If it attacked somebody’s kid, and I could have stopped it, that would be a lot on me,” said Bond Ferguson. “It’s kind of scary and dangerous that they are running around, and people have kids playing in their yards.”
The Facebook page of the Jasper County Sheriff’s Department alerted residents about the accident involving the transport of Rehsus monkeys from Tulane University.
“On 10/28/25, a wreck occurred on I-59 near mile marker 117. This was a truck carrying Rhesus monkeys from Tulane University. The monkeys are approximately 40lbs, they are aggressive to humans, and they require PPE to handle. The monkeys carry hepatitis C, herpes, and COVID. Tulane University has been notified and will send a team to pick up the monkeys tomorrow (the ones that are still caged).”
A truck carrying the monkeys overturned on Oct. 28 on a highway. There were reportedly 21 monkeys in the truck. Thirteen of them were discovered at the accident scene and taken to their destination, according to Tulane University. Five of the monkeys were killed in the hunt for them, and three were still unaccounted for. Before transport, the monkeys were housed at the Tulane University National Biomedical Research Center in New Orleans.
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