Leave it to the New York Daily News to faithfully follow the story of Benjamin, the monkey terror of Greene County, who attacked a guest at the Kaaterskill Bed and Breakfast last summer and then was spirited away to Florida by his owner, who himself fled to South America.
Benjamin died on Monday in a Florida home for difficult primates, the Daily News reports. This means he successfully avoided Greene County's halfhearted attempt to euthanize him for biting the face of an Iranian immigrant who was trying to photograph him in his cage at the Catskill bed-and-breakfast.
The News writes that Benjamin had loving palliative care during his last days in Florida:
The 17-year-old monkey spent his last days getting his face scratched and back rubbed by Jungle Friends workers while enjoying a diet of cooked vegetables[.]
Benjamin's owner, Allen Hirsch, is being sued by the attack victim and could face additional charges from the New York Department of Environmental Conservation -- if he ever returns from Venezuela.
