With four primates still on the loose after 43 of them
escaped on Nov. 6 from the Alpha Genesis Inc. research laboratory in South Carolina, the Low Country facility has come under intense scrutiny.
Animal rights groups have cited the company's history of violations and previous monkey breakouts; a member of Congress has called for an inquiry into its oversight by multiple federal agencies; and residents voiced concern the furry fugitives might spread disease throughout their community.
On top of it all, Alpha Genesis founder and CEO Gregory Westergaard told ABC News his company is investigating whether the release of the monkeys was "an intentional act" by an employee.
The quest for freedom by the pack of young female rhesus macaques coincides with the rapid expansion of the 100-acre Alpha Genesis facility and is casting light on a disruption in the U.S. medical research industry that sounds like a plot for a science fiction thriller. A 2023 report sponsored by the National Institutes of Health warned of a crisis involving the Chinese government that "undermines the security of the nation’s biomedical research enterprise."
Since the escape of 43 primates on Nov. 6 from the Alpha Genesis research laboratory in South Carolina, the facility has come under scrutiny
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