Officials say dozens of animals have been stolen from a Miami-Dade wildlife sanctuary.
The animals were stolen from the We Care Wildlife Sanctuary, located near Southwest 154th Avenue and 212th Street, between 10 p.m. Saturday and 10 a.m. Sunday.
“They unscrewed this bolt off of the actual mechanism that holds the fence together, ’cause they couldn’t cut the lock, I guess,” a volunteer told 7 News, “and then they cut all this out, and then they just pushed the fence out.”
Stolen from the sanctuary were:
- Seven lemurs
- Five marmosets
- Four monkeys
- Seven birds
- 13 tortoises
“Some of these animals need medication,” noted another volunteer. “It’s sad because, unfortunately, some of them might die.”
Robert said a fake Craigslist ad was posted a few days earlier about a sanctuary going out of business.
The Craigslist post read, “Free exotic animals. I’m not longer staying in business I can’t take care of these animals. I have lemurs, marmosets, tortoise, African grays, macaws, horses ect. First come first serve. We’re a sanctuary going out of business. If I’m not there just go around back and take what you want.”
The owner of the animal sanctuary recently moved and did not have surveillance cameras installed.
If you have any information on this crime, call Miami-Dade Crime Stoppers at 305-471-TIPS. Remember, you can always remain anonymous, and you may be eligible for a $1,000 reward.