12 monkeys kidnapped from Petersburg's Zoo

Twelve monkeys have been kidnapped from St. Petersburg's Zoo. On Tuesday night unknown criminals broke the locks on the cages and kidnapped the animals, Yelena Popova, an official of the Zoo's information department, told RIA Novosti.

The disappearance of three tamarins and 9 marmosets was discovered on Wednesday morning. The law enforcement bodies are investigating the kidnapping.

According to Popova, obviously, the criminals had a certain client who wanted to buy so many monkeys.

Tamarins and marmosets, originating from South America, need special care, food and temperature conditions, Popva said. Monkeys can hardly stand stresses. When two kidnapped monkeys were returned to the Zoo in winter 2002, it took them several months to overcome the stress, Yelena Popova added.