Owner asked police to shoot chimp who attacked friend
The owner of a 200-pound chimpanzee that mauled a woman in Connecticut begged police to shoot the animal, crying that her beloved pet was ripping her friend apart.
Police in Stamford released 911 tapes of Sandra Herold’s call to police as her 14-year-old chimp was attacking 55-year-old Charla Nash on Monday.
The chimp can be heard at times on the tape, as Herold cries, “He’s killing my friend.”
The dispatcher says, “Who’s killing your friend?”
Herold replies, “My chimpanzee. He ripped her apart. Shoot him, shoot him.”
The attack lasted about 12 minutes. The chimp, named Travis, also tried to attack police when they arrived, but officers fatally shot him.
Nash is hospitalized in critical condition. Authorities say she has “life-altering” injuries to her face and hands.
Travis, a veteran of TV commercials, was the constant companion of Herold, a Connecticut widow who fed him steak, lobster and ice cream. He could eat at the table, drink wine from a stemmed glass, use the toilet, and dress and bathe himself. He logged on to a computer to look at photos and channel-surfed television with the remote control.
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