Some of your TikTok feeds might feature the content of Kim Raymond “Ray” Feaste , a Black man who is often seen living his best life with his pet monkey, Thabo. However, the creator claims he’s been the target of both critics and cops following a series of complaints.
Feaste told Local 10 News his life with Thabo began five years ago when a Las Vegas lab donated the baby monkey to him after the animal’s mother died in the lab. Thabo ended up in the lab’s custody from a long line of African vervet monkeys who were imported for polio vaccine research, some of whom escaped and found safety in the wild by Dania Beach, Fla., the report says.
Since the two have been together, Feaste documents his daily life with Thabo through a series of amusing social media posts. From them going on shopping trips to the supermarket, hopping about hotel rooms and munching down on chicken wings, the trend across content is often that Thabo is let loose in the environment. The two have rendered over three million followers.
Here, Thabo appears to tear up a hotel room:
Biologists Speak Out
Biologists have grown concerned about Thabo’s content, arguing the monkey needs to be in the wild instead of living the life of a domesticated pet. Veternarian Dr. Pete Otovic told Local 10 its highly unlikely a facility would simply give away their baby monkey.
Other monkey experts worry about the safety of human beings around these animals as well as the health of the monkeys themselves.
“I’m concerned for the welfare of the monkey, because I know he’s not being properly taken care of and they do need lots of mental enrichment, healthy appetite, those types of things” said Dr. Deborah “Missy” Williams, an adjunct professor at Florida Atlantic University, via the South Florida Sun Sentinel.
Police Trouble
Experts aren’t the only ones who were bothering Feaste about his monkey. The creator uploaded a YouTube video showing body camera footage he obtained from the Dooly County and Turner County Sheriff’s Offices in Georgia when he was stopped by officers back in October of 2024.
In one clip, Turner County Sheriff’s Deputy Justin Partain pulled Feaste over for allegedly following too close to the tractor trailer in front of him. Dash camera footage shows the two vehicles weren’t even in the same lane.
During the encounter, the video footage shows the officer notice Thabo, who was in a cage in the back of the vehicle, asking Feaste if he had paperwork to transport the monkey.
“There’s no paperwork required if I’m just traveling through the state,” Feaste responded.
“Yes sir, you got to have paperwork with you to transport a monkey,” the officer said. Though, he never produced information as to what paperwork Feaste needed.
As a result, Partain made Feaste step out of his car and frisked him for weapons. Then, he left Feaste with a warning.
“I have two sheriff’s departments that are conspiring and colluding to send me away to prison for literally no reason and all of the evidence to show that I’m innocent is on video,” Feaste said in the video, arguing that his constitutional rights were violated.
Prior Police Trouble
Further fueling the concern about Thabo is the fact Feaste’s record isn’t necessarily squeaky clean. CBS reports that back in 2013, he was arrested in Florida on the suspicion of stealing an endangered loggerhead sea turtle as well as seizing sea turtle eggs from their nest. However, the charge was dismissed after the judge found officers didn’t read him his Miranda rights and determined he was incompetent to stand trial, per Sun Sentinel’s report.
As of now, Feaste isn’t on the radar of The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, allowing him and Thabo to continue living life like its golden, per Local 10. Though, the chance of him being apprehended by authorities is still likely.