Authorities have not yet determined whether the attacks were the work of a single monkey or whether he had accomplices.
The monkey attacks have caused concern to the authorities Japan, as it is a relatively common phenomenon in some areas. This time a monkey attacked people in a Japanese city and injured 42 people.
Macaques are common across large parts of the country and are considered pests in some areas, eating crops and even burrowing into homes.
But the spate of monkey attacks in the western Japanese city of Yamaguchi is unusual.
The whole city of Yamaguchi is surrounded by mountains and it is not rare to see monkeys,” an official from the city’s agriculture department told AFP news agency, declining to be named. “But it’s rare to see so many attacks in such a short period of time.”
Injuries have so far been largely mild, but authorities are now turning to tranquilizers after the traps they set failed to trap any monkeys.
“At first they only attacked children and women. Recently, elderly and grown men have been targeted,” the official said.
Authorities have not confirmed whether the attacks were the work of multiple monkeys or just one. City officials and police have been patrolling the area since the first attacks on July 8, but have not caught the monkeys.
View the news feed and get the latest news.
