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Jealousy, Assault, and a Love Triangle Between Zookeepers

The meerkat expert at the London Zoo assaulted the monkey handler, after she learned that she was romantically involved with her ex-boyfriend, the llama keeper. You can't make this stuff up.

Read: Zoos of the Future Won't Have Cages

A violent physical attack can happen anywhere, sometimes even at the London Zoo. And just because it happens at a zoo doesn't mean that it has to be between two animals. According to the Associated Press, a meerkat expert was sentenced today for charges relating to an assault against a monkey handler at a zoo Christmas party in a "love spat" over a llama keeper.

The meerkat expert, 30-year-old Caroline Westlake, reportedly attacked the monkey handler, Kate Sanders, with a wine glass at a company Christmas party last December. Both women had been romantically involved with another colleague, the llama keeper, Adam Davies. In addition to claiming that she was punched first, Westlake has claimed that she does not remember hitting Sanders with the wine glass.

Judge Jeremy Colman—from Westminster Magistrates' Court—has ordered that Westlake pay Sanders $1,235 for the "nasty" face injury she endured, and has sentenced Westlake to 12 months community service. It has also been reported that Westlake was fired from the zoo.

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Photo via Flickr user William Warby