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A woman called 911 saying a large chimpanzee was on top of her car, Martin said. She told dispatchers she had her windows rolled up and doors locked. Plunkett, 36, said he was alerted to the commotion by the sound of a helicopter. He estimated the animals to be about 4 feet tall. Adult chimps can be as tall as 5 1/2 feet when standing upright. Martin said police officers tried to corral the animals to await animal control officials, but the male chimp turned toward the gathering crowd. A veteran officer with a shotgun killed it a little before 10:45 a.m. The officer's name wasn't immediately made public. Plunkett said he heard three shots. Helicopter video showed the animal lying face down in the middle of a road, surrounded by animal control trucks and police cars. "We have an exotic animals policy. It's to treat them as humanely as we can," Martin said. "But immediately you recall the woman who has no face because of a chimp. The officer knew they were dangerous animals and he was the last line of defense with citizens behind him." Martin referred to a 2009 attack on a woman who was permanently blinded and when her nose, lips, eyelids and hands were mauled by a chimp before police killed the animal outside a home in Stamford, Conn.
Two adult chimpanzees also attacked a U.S. student last month after he entered their enclosure at a primate sanctuary in South Africa.
[Associated Press; By KEN RITTER and MICHELLE RINDELS]
Copyright 2012 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
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