Police identify Indiana man as Ochsner Park Zoo vandalism suspect

Baraboo investigators have identified a man in connection with the June 7 break-in at Ochsner Park Zoo where 15 enclosures were left open and four animals initially went missing from the zoo.

Aaron Wayne Hovis, 34, of West Lafayette, Indiana, is the main suspect in the vandalism, according to a statement Monday from Lt. Ryan La Broscian of the Baraboo Police Department.

Interim Police Chief Rob Sinden said investigators have not discovered any connection between Hovis and any animal rights groups. Police have recommended he be charged with criminal damage to property, though no charges have been filed as of 4 p.m. Monday in Sauk County Circuit Court.

Hovis is currently being held in Jasper County Jail in Indiana after being charged June 9 with felony counts of bribery, theft and tax evasion, and on June 17 with felony intimidation and resisting an officer, according to court records.

Police were dispatched to the zoo around 8 a.m. June 7 after staff arrived to find the outside doors broken in and locks to enclosures severed with a tool. Four animals, including a pair of river otters and great horned owls who live at the zoo, had left their habitats and gone out into the city, likely over the early morning hours.

The river otters were found that afternoon when kayakers on the Baraboo River spotted the pair playing near the water. Staff members were able to load them into carriers and take them back to their zoo enclosure.

Two great horned owls, Linda and Jerry, also escaped. Both birds were brought to the zoo by a local wildlife rehabilitation center because, despite being able to fly and having good eyesight, they were imprinted on humans, making them unlikely to survive in the wild.

Jerry was found June 9 in a field roughly 4 miles north of the city along County Highway A. He was spotted by passersby who called police and was recovered. He was taken to the zoo’s UW veterinarian, who was able to identify him. Jerry had two wing fractures as well as a small eye injury, said director of the Baraboo Parks, Recreation and Forestry Department Mike Hardy.

After staying overnight, Jerry was brought back to Ochsner Park Zoo, but is undergoing a month of quarantine to heal from his injuries. Jerry was likely injured by swiping a vehicle mid-flight or running into a sign, Hardy said, though there is no way to know how it happened.

Linda, the second great horned owl, has been spotted near the zoo in recent days. She is likely staying close to her food source, seen once in a tree above the llama enclosure at the zoo, though too high for staff to recover her. She may eventually become too weak to fly and be lying on the ground in the neighborhood. Zoo staff have encouraged members of the public to call the non-emergency police line to report any such sighting.