Wild Monkey Holds Kitten Hostage

Authorities in Osaka, Japan, had a monkey on their backs Thursday. It happened when a wild monkey decided to wander into the big city. And, as CBS News Correspondent Barry Petersen reports, it managed to make a monkey out of police.

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Petersen calls it "a bit of monkey business that got real scary, real fast." The monkey came from hills around Osaka, which is Japan's second-largest city. Monkeys are common in the wilds of Japan and, every now and then, one decides he would rather be a city slicker.

Just when police thought they had him cornered, he grabbed a hostage - a small kitten - and the tables were turned. It's abnormal that the monkey should grab a
kitten, said an official.

Now the monkey had the upper hand, running through the neighborhood with nervous police giving chase and warning citizens, "Watch out! There's a wild monkey on the loose."

The monkey made his way to a primary school, where children were swiftly evacuated. Then the kitten-napping critter slipped away.

In the end, one resident said the kitten was released. And, at last report, the monkey, born free in the wilds, remained free - despite man's best efforts.