Chimpanzee gunned down after escaping from zoo

Chimpanzee gunned down after escaping from zoo

A runaway chimp was shot dead after breaking out of his enclosure at an English zoo.

Chimpanzees Jonnie and Coco broke out of their compound Friday morning at the Whipsnade Zoo in Bedfordshire, about 35 miles (55 kilometers) north of London. The Zoological Society of London, which runs the zoo, said Coco was recaptured, but Jonnie could not immediately be caught and had to be killed.

"It's just standard procedure, if the animal cannot be quickly and safely recaptured it will be shot," ZSL spokeswoman Alice Henchley said.

Jonnie, an adult male, was gunned down by the zoo's specially trained firearms squad, Henchley said. She added that Jonnie and Coco's keepers were still trying to figure out how the apes escaped.