Dead Woman Found in Motel Room With 2 Monkeys

Also discovered: an "incoherent" man and a note
By Luke Roney,  Newser Staff
Posted Feb 1, 2016 6:41 AM CST
Dead Woman Found in Motel Room With 2 Monkeys
A capuchin monkey.   (AP Photo/dpa, Holger Hollemann)

Police in North Port, Fla., on Friday discovered a dead woman, two live monkeys, and a note in a room at the local Budget Inn, CNN reports. Also in the room was an "incoherent" man, who received medical treatment before being questioned. The Capuchin monkeys were in crates and apparently unharmed. Police identified the dead woman as 59-year-old Linda Marie Smith.

"There was no obvious signs of trauma to Smith's body," police say, per CNN. "The cause of death is undetermined at this point. The medical examiner will soon conduct an autopsy." Police did not disclose the content of the note, nor did they identify the man. Florida requires 1,000 hours of training, two letters of reference, and a state-issued license to possess the monkeys, the Sarasota Herald-Tribune reports, and a Fish and Wildlife Commission rep says they'll likely be placed with someone who has such a license. (More Florida stories.)

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