Truck hauling ‘aggressive’ monkeys carrying herpes and COVID overturns in Mississippi

Published: Oct. 28, 2025 at 1:54 PM CDT|Updated: 2 hours ago

JASPER COUNTY, Miss. (WLBT) - A truck hauling “aggressive” monkeys overturned in Mississippi on Tuesday.

According to authorities, the Rhesus monkeys were on their way to a testing facility in Florida after being at Tulane University.

The monkeys were 40 pounds and were “aggressive,” authorities said. They were also carrying hepatitis C, herpes, and COVID.

In a Tuesday afternoon update, the Jasper County Sheriff’s Office said all of the escaped monkeys, except for one, “have been destroyed.”

The sheriff’s department is still looking for one of the monkeys that is still on the loose.

The Mississippi Department of Wildlife, Fisheries, and Parks is on site with local law enforcement.

The incident happened on I-59 near mile marker 117, which is north of Heidelberg, Mississippi.

The Jasper County Sheriff’s Office says that Tulane University has been notified and will send a team to pick up the monkeys on Wednesday.