Woman tried to flush her pet monkey

In what must be one of the most horrific stories to come out this year, drug dealer Vicki Holland from Wales, was charged after video footage of her appeared that showed her trying to get her pet Marmoset to lick cocaine off her fingers. Officers also found videos where the woman tried to flush her pet monkey.

Holland, who pleaded guilty to three offences against the Animal Welfare Act, was given a 12-month suspended sentence and banned for life from owning animals.

What makes the story about the abuse more horrifying is that Holland recorded many of the instances on her mobile phone, including efforts to try and flush her Marmoset down the toilet. In evidence shown in court, the Marmoset can be seen trying desperately to hang on to the rim of the toilet.

Other abuse the Marmoset endured included being fed burgers, kebabs, sausages and processed ham.

Prosecutor Aled Watkins made reference to the Marmoset’s “very particular set of needs”, Holland provided no UVB lighting for the monkey and its cage was “devoid of decor needed for environmental enrichment.” He described the situation to magistrates as “This is deliberate infliction, this isn’t neglect.”

Gwent police who raided her home found 22 videos involving the Marmoset, which were described in court as being “very disturbing”. Three of those shown to the court include the woman who tried to flush her pet monkey wherein she is heard to say  “I need the toilet” and “shall I flush it?”. The lavatory then flushes and Holland calls the animal a “f—— t—.” In another video she can be heard saying to the animal “Want some coke? Lick my fingers.”

The defence of the woman

Holland’s defence attorney Scott Bowen, said she was “deeply embarrassed and deeply ashamed of her behaviour”. He added that she fully accepts she “shouldn’t have had the animal in the first place”.

He countered that the monkey had experienced “distress” but there was “no long-term damage” to the animal. The monkey was handed over to the RSPCA by police during their investigations and is now in the care of the specialist primate experts at Monkey World in Dorset for ongoing care.

The sentencing for the abuse

Speaking about the case, woman tried to flush pet monkey, Sophie Daniels, an RSPCA inspector, said: “I was immediately and gravely concerned about the welfare of this marmoset when I saw these disturbing videos.

“Videos from the defendant’s phone showed Holland offering the marmoset cocaine, while another showed the clearly terrified marmoset down a toilet bowl. Holland was shouting, swearing, laughing and at one point in the clip, the toilet is flushed, showing the petrified animal struggling to cling onto the side of the bowl.

“An independent vet soon confirmed that the marmoset was suffering unnecessarily as a result of the way she had been treated.

“We’d like to thank Gwent Police for their assistance in this case, along with Monkey World who have provided a forever home for the marmoset. Thankfully, this monkey is now getting the care they deserve after such shocking mistreatment.”

Drugs were involved

The animal was found as part of a drugs raid earlier this year. Holland and her partner Russell Cox, 43, were caught with the class A drug in Kinder chocolate surprise eggs. The pair admitted possession with intent to supply a class-A drug at Newport Crown Court.

Cox, from Cwmbran, south Wales was jailed for 30 months and Holland was jailed for 20 months, suspended for two years in November last year.

A Proceeds of Crime hearing was told the couple made almost £40,000 from their cocaine business.

The cruelty involved when Holland, the woman tried to flush her pet monkey, abused her Marmoset is staggering and indefensible.

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