A marmoset monkey is seen at the Warsaw Zoo. (Photo by Anna Ferensowicz/Pacific Press/LightRocket via Getty Images)
SEVIERVILLE, Tenn. - Police in Tennessee say two people face charges after officers found a dead monkey inside a hot car parked outside of a waterpark.
According to the Sevierville Police Department, officers on Wednesday found the dead nine-week old marmoset monkey and a five-week old monkey that was alive in the car parked at Soaky Mountain Waterpark after the facility’s management notified police at about 4:30 p.m. about seeing a dead monkey in a car.
The outside air temperature at the time was about 87 degrees according to police.
Police say the other monkey was in distress from the extreme interior vehicle heat. It was taken to an animal hospital and was very dehydrated but improving.
54-year old Nova Brettell of Warsaw, Indiana has been charged with aggravated animal cruelty, and 54-year old David Paul Brettell has been charged with animal cruelty.
Police say additional charges are possible and the investigation is ongoing.
According to the ASPCA, vehicle interior temperature in the summer can rise from 85 degrees to 120 degrees within thirty minutes.