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Zyair Dennis, 24, was charged with one count of defiant trespassing, the Bridgeton Police Department said in a news release on Monday, Aug. 26. She was also cited for two violations of city ordinances about people climbing fences at Cohanzick Zoo.
Investigators said Dennis went into the restricted area near the zoo's tiger and bear enclosures on Sunday, Aug. 18. Police began investigating after the city's recreation department received video from other zoo visitors of Dennis trying to pet one tiger.
Police shared video on Tuesday, Aug. 20 of the incident and the 16-second clip showed a woman putting her hand through wire fencing. The big cat then appears to try biting her hand and starts frantically pacing.
The woman then backed away from the wiring and climbed over the wooden fence on the outside of the exhibit. Police also said there was another video of a similar incident at the bear enclosure involving the same woman on the same day.
Chief Michael Gaimari Sr. said the police department received "instant responses" after sharing videos and pictures of the tiger incident. The tips helped investigators identify Dennis as the suspect.
Cohanzick's website said the zoo has two Bengal tigers named Rishi and Mahesha. The brothers were born in a litter of five at a North Carolina zoo on Friday, Sept. 30. 2016.
The tigers were donated to Cohanzick in January 2017 and they were the zoo's first tigers after its two white tigers died about two years earlier.
"In memory of those two tigers, Ganesha and Shiva, the zoo chose names for the cubs to honor them," the tigers' website biography said. "Former zoo coordinator Kelly Shaw explained that Mahesha means "great lord" and is another way to say Shiva, and Rishi means “poet” in Hindu, which is a connection to Ganesha, the name of the Hindu god known as the patron of arts, letters, and writing."
Dennis will be scheduled for an appearance in Bridgeton Joint Municipal Court.
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