Two American Men Fined 300,000 Yen for Trespassing into Japanese Macaque Enclosure

(Central News Agency, Chiba, 7th – Combined Foreign News) Two American men were arrested last month for trespassing into the 'Monkey Mountain' Japanese macaque enclosure at the Ichikawa City Zoological and Botanical Garden in Chiba Prefecture, Japan. After prosecutors sought a summary indictment, the Chiba Summary Court fined each of them 300,000 yen (approximately NT$60,000).

The incident sparked attention on social media because 'Panchi-kun', a highly popular monkey online, lives in that area.

According to reports from the Yomiuri Shimbun and Mainichi Shimbun citing the indictment, the accused are a 24-year-old university student and a 27-year- old company director. The two are suspected of conspiring to climb over a fence and enter the Japanese macaque enclosure on May 17, preventing the zoo from carrying out its normal operations and obstructing the work of the zoo staff. They were arrested on suspicion of 'forcible obstruction of business'.

The Chiba District Public Prosecutors Office indicted the two on the same charge on the 5th of this month and requested a summary judgment from the court. The Chiba Summary Court fined each of them 300,000 yen on the same day, and the two paid the fines that day.

Panchi-kun was abandoned by his mother as an infant and was raised by hand. He is always seen carrying a stuffed orangutan toy and sleeping while cuddling it. His cute yet pitiable image made him an internet sensation, turning him into a zoo star and attracting many overseas tourists to the Ichikawa City Zoological and Botanical Garden.