USDA Investigating Alpha Genesis Deaths of 18 Endangered Monkeys in Heater Disaster After PETA Complaint

For Immediate Release:
November 26, 2024

Contact:
Tasgola Bruner 202-483-7382

Please see the following statement from PETA primate scientist Dr. Lisa Jones-Engel regarding whistleblower reports that 18 endangered long-tailed macaques, held at Alpha Genesis’ Yemassee Primate Center, died after a diesel heater malfunctioned on Friday night. Yesterday, PETA called on the U.S. Department of Agriculture to investigate the incident. The agency has confirmed to the media that it’s doing just that. Here and here are just two news stories.

Alpha Genesis has blood on its hands again. The notorious monkey dealer, already reeling from the November 7 escape of 43 rhesus macaques, now faces another grim scandal—this time, the horrific deaths of 18 endangered, long-tailed macaques due to sheer negligence.

According to multiple whistleblower reports, a diesel heater may have malfunctioned at the facility late Friday night. There were no alarms, no alerts, as 18 long-tailed macaques likely endured agonizing deaths—either slowly roasted alive or suffocated by deadly carbon dioxide fumes. The images this conjures are beyond disturbing: sentient creatures, confined and helpless, betrayed by a system that prioritizes profit over basic decency or scientific competency.

This is no accident—it’s a deadly pattern, bankrolled by $19 million in National Institutes of Health contracts. Alpha Genesis has repeatedly failed to meet even the bare minimum standards for animal welfare. It’s time to cut the funding and end this cruelty.

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