Police are investigating the family of the boy who entered the gorilla enclosure at the Cincinnati zoo over the holiday weekend during an incident that led to the animal being shot dead and a storm of public protest.
Investigators from the Cincinnati police department are reviewing “the incident and the lead-up to it”, department spokesperson Tiffaney Hardy said Tuesday. The department has also called for witnesses to come forward.
The actions of the zoo are being looked into by the federal government, and the zoo itself is reviewing safety in the aftermath of the dramatic episode that occurred on Saturday afternoon.
Some leading wildlife experts are calling for safety standards to be raised at zoos across the US because of such incidents involving the public and dangerous animals.
And world-famous British primate researcher Jane Goodall sent a note of sympathy to the director of the zoo, Thane Maynard, with whom she has co-authored a wildlife book in the past.
Meanwhile, the Cincinnati police department announced on Tuesday that it is looking into the actions of the parents, but there has not yet been any decision about criminal charges.
“We are investigating the family. Depending on what we find we will make a determination if there will be charges filed, but I cannot say what those charges might be,” said Hardy.
She added that it was possible staff at the zoo would be interviewed and she added: “I’m sure that the parents provided a statement.”
The local prosecutor, Joseph Deters, issued a statement saying that once the police had concluded their investigation “they will confer with our office on possible criminal charges”.
Hardy, said the police are not investigating the zoo.
“They are being investigated from the federal standpoint by the United States Department of Agriculture,” she said.
On Saturday afternoon the boy eluded his parents’ control and climbed over the three-foot steel barrier between the public and the gorilla enclosure. He pushed through some bushes and then fell 15 feet down into the sunken enclosure, into a shallow moat used by the apes.
Onlookers watched in horror and took video as an adult male silverback gorilla named Harambe dragged the child swiftly across the moat by his ankle. The boy could be heard on tape sobbing and squealing.
Maynard said that after the animal pulled the child through the water again, banging the boy’s head on the concrete, Harambe injured him further as he carried him up a ladder to the rocky part of the gorilla exhibit. Staff shot the animal as the boy was between his feet and the child was rescued.
In a statement on Wednesday, the boy’s family said he was doing well after a medical checkup, and directed well-wishers to donate to the Cincinatti Zoo in Harambe’s name.
The death of the gorilla sparked a massive outbreak of commentary on social media, with many launching vicious attacks against the mother of the boy, while others variously supported and criticized the zoo. And crowds of animal lovers and activists held a protest vigil at the zoo.
The USDA’s animal and plant inspection service is looking into the incident, according to the Associated Press.
The AP also reported that a federal inspector had warned the Cincinnati zoo about a March incident involving polar bears in which the public could have been “at great risk”.
On 16 March, some zoo visitors were moved for safety after two polar bears wandered through a den door that had been left open and reached a service hallway.
But federal reports also showed that the zoo’s Gorilla World exhibit was inspected in April 2016 and no violations were found.
In a briefing on Memorial Day, Maynard insisted that the zoo was not negligent and its Gorilla World habitat was safe and complied with all regulations. The zoo is inspected by the USDA and accredited by the US Association of Zoos and Aquariums, he said.
He added, however, that the exhibit was under safety review following the incident, and he did not know if there would be any changes made to the enclosure prior to the habitat reopening, as early as Saturday.
Adam Roberts, chief executive of animal advocacy group Born Free USA, said: “I think every zoo in America should close their doors while they immediately review all their barriers and procedures. For Cincinnati zoo to suggest that the enclosure was safe flies in the face of the reality of the boy going into the exhibit.”
Roberts called for a public safety inquiry into Cincinnati zoo. He also demanded that the federal government review its animal welfare laws and zoo licensing programs “to ensure that this kind of accident cannot happen again”.
The Jane Goodall Institute, the research group founded by the legendary naturalist and chimpanzee expert, released the text of the email Goodall sent to Maynard after the incident with Harambe.
Goodall and Maynard jointly wrote the book Hope For Animals and Their World: How Endangered Species Are Being Rescued From the Brink.
Goodall was unavailable for comment. But the email her office released said: “Dear Thane, I feel so sorry for you, having to try to defend something which you may well disapprove of. I tried to see exactly what was happening – it looked as though the gorilla was putting an arm around the child – like the female who rescued and returned the child from the Chicago exhibit. Anyway, whatever, it is a devastating loss to the zoo, and to the gorillas. How did the others react? Are they allowed to see, and express grief, which seems to be so important? Feeling for you, Jane.”
The “others” refers to other gorillas in the exhibit on Saturday which, unlike Harambe, retreated from the scene when called by the zookeepers, while the large male approached the child.
The Chicago mention refers to an incident in 1996 when a female gorilla rescued a child that fell into the enclosure at the Brookfield zoo in Illinois.
Associated Press contributed to this report.
