When public officers indulge in high crimes and violate the law, they are bound to gather attention. Similarly, Cy Vierstra, mentioned in Chimp Crazy, worked as a financial officer in Vinton County, Ohio, and was apprehended for misusing public funds. Vierstra became controversial after purchasing exotic animals with the stolen money and enlisting the help of a woman named Tonia Haddix to hide the animals.
The Chimp Crazy documentary takes a slight detour to explore Tonia Haddix's story. It explores how Haddix's love for Chimpanzees led her to choose the most unexpected and unethical path.
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Read below to find out more about Chimp Crazy and how Cy Vierstra and Tonia Haddix joined forces to fool the law.
Disclaimer: This article might contain major spoilers of the Chimp Crazy documentary. Reader's discretion is advised.
Who is Cy Vierstra? The ex-fiscal officer who received help from Tonia Haddix, seen in Chimp Crazy
It's been a few days since HBO released another hit docuseries, Chimp Crazy. The docuseries delves deep into the story of Tonia Haddix, an animal lover who became a wrongdoer after involving Cy Vierstra in hiding Tonka, a chimpanzee presumed dead because of Haddix's lie.
As seen in the third episode of Chimp Crazy, Tonia Haddix intentionally hid Tonka from the legal authorities, claiming that the animal had died. However, Tonka was given shelter by another law offender, Cy Vierstra, for almost six months, just before Haddix was caught and asked to return the chimpanzee to the sanctuary.
The four-part docuseries revealed that Vierstra became obsessed with buying things from auctions, and following his craze, he cleverly used public funds for these dealings. Cy Vierstra also fabricated the official records to ensure his safety, presenting a lie about the funds being utilized for good.
Vierstra previously bought exotic animals, including a wildebeest, snow owls, and a chimp. Therefore, it was easy for him to keep Tonka and show that the animal belonged to him.
While Cy Vierstra was completely into violating animal rights and misusing public funds for personal gain, Haddix was an animal lover who chose the wrong path to keep Tonka with her.
What happened to Cy Vierstra? Did he surrender after violating the law?
Cy Vierstra misused his access to township funds to provide shelter to exotic animals, including Ricky, a chimp who later died of liver disease. The Auditor of State’s Special Investigations Unit (SIU) was alerted after speculations about his illegal actions.
Investigations revealed that Vierstra generated fake invoices between 2016 and 2020 and manipulated legal documents to hide corruption.
In 2022, Cy Vierstra was declared guilty of the crimes mentioned above. Per Roadside Zoo News, the "township reported total losses of $287,565 attributed to Vierstra’s theft" after he used the money to renovate his house and improve his roadside zoo.
The report extensively covered everything that Cy Vierstra had purchased from auctions. The ex-financial officer is serving his time in prison after being sentenced to 4 four years and 11 months in February 2023.
Chimp Crazy is available on HBO for you to stream.
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