Wolf Killed; 6 Animals Captured; 48 Others Killed; Monkey Still Loose

THE LATEST: Forty-eight animals were killed: 1 wolf, 6 black bears, 2 grizzly bears, 9 male lions, 8 lionesses, 1 baboon, 3 mountain lions and 18 tigers.

Six animals were transported to the Columbus zoo: One grizzly bear, 3 leopards and 2 monkeys. 

Two are still missing: 1 wolf and 1 monkey.

Muskingum County Sheriff Matt Lutz said there are two animals still missing and the missing bear and mountain lion have been killed.

3 P.M. PRESS CONFERENCE: We are working to update this story with information from the news conference. You can go here for a complete recap of our LIVE UPDATES.

Shortly after 1 p.m., Lutz said that both the grizzly bear and the mountain lion were killed Tuesday night and the carcasses were found today.

A monkey and a wolf still are loose after about 48 to 50 animals, which included Bengal tigers, mountain lions, grizzly bears and black bears, escaped from a Muskingum County animal preserve on Kopchak Road sometime Tuesday.

At about 12:40 p.m. Wednesday, Lutz confirmed the preserve owner, Terry Thompson, died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound after opening up pens and cages.

Officials said they do not know the color of the still loose wolf yet. Jack Hanna, the director emeritus of the Columbus Zoo and Aquarium is working with the emergency communications group. He said the wolf looks like a dog but it is not a tame animal. Anyone who sees the wolf should call the sheriff's office. More details on the wolf will be released during the 3 p.m. update.

Three leopards, one grizzly bear and two macaques (a breed of monkey) were transported to the zoo Tuesday afternoon.

Hanna said the animals will go into quarantine before that.

The Columbus zoo has reached out to other zoos for possible placement, but the animals still belong to Thompson's wife legally. She was at the preserve Wednesday afternoon.

The zoo called in extra security after reports of death threats from people who are pro-animal rights. The Zanesville Chamber of Commerce also received a few emailed threats.

Candice Lee and Mike Bowersock are reporting from Muskingum County today. 

The emergency command center is about a quarter of a mile away from the Muskingum County Animal Farm, a wild-animal preserve, at 270 Kopchack Road.

nbc4i.com is providing up-to-the-minute updates. Keep checking back.

10 A.M. PRESS CONFERENCE
Hanna told the public during a 10 a.m. news conference that Lutz did the right thing when making the shoot-to-kill order.

Authorities in both Muskingum and Licking counties received reports of animal sightings overnight Tuesday. Authorities did not confirm any sightings.

Hanna and Lutz said if you see one of these animals, do not run. Yell and scream. Ninety percent of the time, the animal will run from you if you scream. Then, call your local sheriff's office.

"You cannot run from it. It doesn't see you as a human. It sees you as something fleeing, or something to play with … take it down. That's one thing you don't do is run. Call the sheriff," Hanna said.

There haven't been any human injuries to this point.

Someone attempted to steal one of the big cats Tuesday night. The animal was recovered, and the person was taken into police custody. Charges will be filed, the sheriff said.

WEDNESDAY MORNING
Shortly after 7 a.m., Lutz said that 30 to 35 of the animals had been captured or killed.

There was a shoot-to-kill order overnight. Deputies and troopers used night vision to capture or kill the animals. They also were concentrating on preserving the crime scene.

"We all love our animal world. And we love the people world, too. People's safety is first, and then we have animals to protect," Hanna said.

Hanna told NBC4 tranquilizing an animal at night is very difficult. He said that is not an excuse but an explanation.

Hanna said veterinarians were at the scene and if it was possible to tranquilize any of the loose animals without harming human life, that's what would happen.

The Wilds, a conservation center in Zanesville, was helping out as well, Hanna said.

Deputies and troopers focused their search on the a 40-acre property off Kopchak Road and the surrounding area Wednesday.

Lutz said they were searching by pickup truck along the roadways, not in the woods.

TUESDAY NIGHT
Deputies were called to a home on Kopchak Road after a report of escaped wild animals, including cougars, tigers, lions, cheetahs and grizzly bears at about 7:20 p.m.

Lutz said deputies shot up to 25 animals on the way to the home to check on the owner but it was suspsected that there were as many as 48 animals still loose. Deputies said the animals' cages were open when they arrived.

"There were grizzly bears and black bears there. There were cheetahs, lions, tigers. Those were the primary things we would be concerned with. Any kind of cat species and any kind of bear species right now is what we're mainly concerned with," said Lutz.

"We want our citizens to take any and all precautions. They can tonight. Our number one priority right now is nobody gets hurt out of this ordeal. This is a bad situation. It's been a bad situation for a long time, and the last thing we want to do is have any of our public hurt," Lutz said.

"The caretaker advised they were fed [Monday.] The animals have both been taken care of on a routine basis," Lutz said.

WHIZ-TV stated deputies had to shoot a wolf that they believe came from the same property.

TERRY THOMPSON BACKGROUND
Lutz said the last time the sheriff's office responded to the home on a complaint, Thompson had all the legal permits for the animals. Lutz did not comment on the current status of Thompson's permits.

"The last time we were here on a complaint he was legal to be here. He has had permits in the past to have these animals," Lutz said.

In April 2010, NBC4 reported that Thompson pleaded guilty to two counts of possession of illegal firearms, including five fully automatic firearms and three short-barreled firearms without serial numbers.

According to court documents, ATF agents seized the illegal weapons while executing a search warrant of Thompson’s property near Zanesville in June 2008.

OHIO & EXOTIC PETS (Courtesy of the Associated Press)
Ohio has some of the nation's weakest restrictions on exotic pets and among the highest number of injuries and deaths caused by them. In 2010, an animal caretaker was killed by a bear at a property in Cleveland.

On Wednesday, the Humane Society of the United States criticized Gov. John Kasich for allowing a statewide ban on the buying and selling of exotic pets to expire in April. The organization urged the state to immediately issue emergency restrictions.

"How many incidents must we catalog before the state takes action to crack down on private ownership of dangerous exotic animals?" Wayne Pacelle, president and CEO, said in a statement.

MAIL SERVICE
David Van Allen, with the U.S. Postal Service, said Zanesville residents with a mounted mailbox, where the carrier drives up, will receive mail as normal. If you receive, a parcel where the driver gets out, your mail will not be delivered today. If you have a carrier who walks up to the house, you may not get delivery. It is up to the discretion of the letter carrier to determine if whether it is safe. If the situation were to change, the post office may try to deliver later Wednesday.

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