Overview
- Officers found the roughly three-year-old chimpanzee confined in a dark, caged enclosure near Syracuse with a severe injury near its groin.
- The animal was tethered to an approximately two-metre chain, according to the Carabinieri.
- Specialists at the Rome zoo have begun gradual rehabilitation, and a later release into the wild is considered unlikely.
- During the search, police also seized an illegally kept parrot from the apartment.
- Experts cited in the coverage say the case reflects a lucrative illegal trade in exotic animals that inflicts suffering and threatens global biodiversity.