A Rotterdam family yesterday pressed ahead with its damages claim against the city’s Blijdorp zoo, following the escape of the gorilla Bokito in early June.

The family’s lawyer told a court in Rotterdam that the zoo authorities had not done enough to prevent the gorilla escaping. Bokito crossed a wide water-filled ditch and attacked a woman before being subdued.
The public prosecution department decided earlier this month not to prosecute the zoo authorities because it had all the necessary licences.