‘Cha Cha’ the chimp escapes from Japanese zoo

SENDAI, Japan, April 14 (UPI) — A chimpanzee led Japanese police on a wild chase after making a daring escape from a local zoo.

“Cha Cha” the chimp escaped from Yagiyama Zoological Park in Sendai on Thursday afternoon and climbed a telephone wire in an attempt to escape the pursuit of police and zoo staff.

Zoo staff closed the park after noticing that Cha Cha, one of five chimpanzees kept at the facility, was missing.

He was then spotted climbing along power lines in a residential area before the two-hour chase ended when he was shot with a tranquilizer gun.

No one was injured in the incident, but a local elementary school went on lockdown until the chimpanzee was caught.

Director of Yagiyama Zoological Park Toshikatsu Ouchi apologized for the incident and an investigation into what caused the escape was launched by zoo officials.