Gorilla swallows N6.8m in Kano zoo

The gorilla allegedly snuck into the office, took the money away before swallowing it.

A gorilla in the Kano State Zoological Gardens has been accused of swallowing N6.8 million.

According to BBC Pidgin, a radio station in Kano, Freedom Radio claimed that one of the finance officers said that a gorilla swallowed the missing money.

BBC Pidgin however stated that it could not independently verify this claim.

Managing director of the zoo, Umar Kobo, also confirmed that the money is missing and that the issue is under investigation. He didn't however mention the gorilla.

“The issue is under investigations for now and I don’t want to say anything on the matter, many journalists have come to meet me but I don’t want to say anything. What I can confirm is that money is missing,” he said.

Spokesman of Kano state Police Command, Abdullahi Haruna, also confirmed that 10 persons, including those on duty when the money went missing, have been arrested.

“Yes, it is true that money from five days of Sallah festivities is missing from the Kano zoo. As at now, we have arrested 10 members of staff of the zoo including the security man and those working in the finance unit,” Haruna said, according to the BBC.

Money, an animal delicacy

This comes months after Philomina Chieshe, a sales clerk in the office of the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) in Benue state, alleged that a snake swallowed N36 million in her office.

Similarly, former Kaduna state lawmaker, Senator Shehu Sani, had alleged that monkeys carted N70 million belonging to northern senators in the eighth Senate.