Lonely Chimpanzee Rescued From ‘Tiger King’ Villain’s Roadside Zoo After PETA Pressure

For Immediate Release:
December 10, 2024

Contact:
Moira Colley 202-483-7382

Crazy victory! In the wake of HBO Max’s Chimp Crazy and an escalating pressure campaign by PETA following the release of the explosive docuseries, infamous Tiger King villain and drug kingpin and owner of Zoological Wildlife Foundation in Miami, Mario Tabraue, has surrendered Limbani the chimpanzee—who was kept in solitary confinement for eight years, since he was four days old—to the spacious Fort Pierce, Florida sanctuary Save the Chimps. Limbani is the 25^th chimpanzee PETA helped to rescue from dire circumstances, including by pledging a donation toward his lifetime care.

Eight-year-old Limbani—who was torn away from his mother as an infant—was one of the last chimpanzees in the U.S. kept in isolation from others of his own species. His rescue comes after PETA offered a reward of up to $10,000 for evidence that would result in his confiscation by law-enforcement authorities; enlisted 200,000 of its members and supporters to plead for Limbani’s release; and submitted numerous complaints alerting state officials to Limbani’s continued exploitation at the Zoological Wildlife Foundation.

Limbani was held in a small cage at night and a barren, concrete-floored enclosure during the day at Zoological Wildlife Foundation, which exploited him for photo ops and dangerous public encounters. The roadside zoo was issued a warning by state authorities in 2020 after Limbani bit a child, causing a deep laceration that required stitches. At the time, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission instructed the facility to stop allowing public contact with Limbani, but evidence from social media indicates that it continued.

“Gone are Limbani’s days of languishing alone in a cage and being used as a moneymaker by his abusers. At Save the Chimps, h will have a lush habitat to explore and the opportunity to connect with a surrogate mother who will show him how to forge relationships and be a chimpanzee at long last,” says PETA Foundation General Counsel Brittany Peet. “Champagne corks are popping at PETA over Limbani’s long-awaited rescue and we won’t stop until every remaining chimpanzee in roadside zoos and the pet trade follow his path to a new life.”

Among the 24 other chimpanzees whom PETA has helped transfer to accredited sanctuaries are Tonka, who was thrust into the national spotlight after Chimp Crazy revealed the bizarre lengths to which villain Tonia Haddix went to keep him in her possession; several of Tonka’s relatives, including his brother Joe and children Chloe, Mikayla, and Lisa Marie; and Iris, who was overweight with underdeveloped legs and bulging eyes as a result of the lack of sunlight in the filthy, windowless cell where she was confined at a Georgia roadside zoo. The animals were transferred to Save the Chimps and Wauchula, Florida sanctuary Center for Great Apes, both of which provide large indoor-outdoor spaces where chimpanzees can run, climb, lounge in the sun, and—most importantly—enjoy the company of other chimpanzees.

PETA’s $10,000 reward still stands for information leading to the confiscation of any of the other (fewer than 100) chimpanzees across the country who are still languishing at roadside zoos or in the pet trade—including Bow, the last solitary chimpanzee held in a private home, and Ricky, a chimpanzee exploited for photo shoots and commercials by the notorious exhibitor Pam Rosaire-Zoppe. PETA urges everyone to support the bipartisan Captive Primate Safety Act, which would ban private ownership, private breeding, and all commercial activity involving primates used in the pet trade.

Whistleblowers with information about Bow, Ricky, or other captive chimpanzees are encouraged to contact PETA.

PETA—whose motto reads, in part, that “animals are not ours to use for entertainment”—points out that Every Animal Is Someone and offers free Empathy Kits for people who need a lesson in kindness. For more information, please visit PETA.org or follow PETA on X, Facebook, or Instagram.