Man Mistakes Son For Ape And Kills Him

(NDJ) In a rural village in Nepal a man accidentally mistakes his son for a Macaque monkey and shoots him dead.

The farmer told police his 12 year old son had climbed into a tree in their cornfield to chase the monkeys away.

In many parts of Asia, Macaque monkeys enjoy a ‘holy’ status. Photo Credit: BRUNO

“When I heard a wrestling in the tree I thought is was a monkey and shot it dead, not realizing it was my own son,” the distraught man told officers.

The Macaque monkeys are common in parts of Nepal and Asia and although considered to be a ‘holy’ creature and never harmed, in some rural areas the apes pose threats to farmers’ crops.

Because of the religious status these monkeys enjoy, most farmers try scaring them away from their crops using sticks and making loud noise.

That method however only produces temporarily results and several farmers have begun shooting the ‘pests’.

The farmer said he didn’t know his son had gone into the field and climbed in the tree wanting to stop the monkeys from eating their corn.

Nepalese police ruled the shooting death an unfortunate accident.