Chimp Loose in Ukraine's Kharkiv Returns to Zoo After Staffer Dresses Her in Hoodie

A Kharkiv Zoo chimpanzee named Chichi escaped her zoo enclosure and ventured around the Ukrainian city on September 5, before she was lured back to the zoo by a patient staffer, who sat with her, dressed her in a hoodie, and gave her a hug.

Videos taken by bystanders showed the ape wandering past buildings next to the zoo and toward the nearby Freedom Square, a large public plaza in central Kharkiv.

This footage from Kharkiv resident Ekaterina Boiko shows Chichi rambling around the square before approaching a zookeeper, identified in reports as Victoria Kozyreva, who dresses the chimp in a yellow hoodie and then hugs her.

Viral footage taken by another bystander, Kira Kuznetsova, showed the zookeeper and two other people using a bicycle to transport Chichi back to the zoo.

According to Suspilne, Ukraine’s public broadcaster, zoo officials said the chimpanzee was returned safely to her enclosure. Credit: Ekaterina Boiko via Storyful