Show-Me State Times

A Missouri woman has been sentenced to nearly four years in prison for repeatedly lying to a federal court about the fate of Tonka, a chimpanzee that appeared in Hollywood films and was at the center of a lengthy legal dispute.

Tonia Haddix, 55, received a 46-month prison sentence from U.S. District Judge Stephen R. Clark after pleading guilty earlier this year to two counts of perjury and one count of obstruction of justice. The charges stemmed from false statements she made during a civil lawsuit filed by People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) regarding the care of Tonka and other chimpanzees at her facility near Festus, Missouri.

According to court records, Haddix falsely claimed over several months that Tonka had died, filing declarations under penalty of perjury and motions with materially false information in an attempt to avoid complying with court orders. These orders required improvements to the chimpanzees’ living conditions and eventually mandated their transfer to sanctuaries. While six chimpanzees were removed by court order in July 2021, Haddix had secretly relocated Tonka to Ohio.

On multiple occasions—including an August 2021 declaration and sworn testimony before the court in January 2022—Haddix maintained that Tonka was dead and cremated. “...I wanted to keep trying to save Tonka if I could,” she wrote. “But then he just died on his own, so there was no saving him.” Her statements led the court to deny PETA’s motion for civil contempt at that time.

However, new evidence surfaced in June 2022 showing Tonka was alive. He was found caged in Haddix’s basement and subsequently transferred by Deputy U.S. Marshals to Save the Chimps sanctuary, where he remains.

Haddix also appeared in a documentary titled “Chimp Crazy,” where she was depicted hiding Tonka while claiming he had died. After her guilty plea this year, authorities discovered another chimp hidden at her home during an inspection by United States Pretrial Services officers; this animal was rescued following a court-ordered search on July 9.

In sentencing documents, Assistant U.S. Attorney Hal Goldsmith noted Haddix’s open defiance toward both the court and PETA throughout media appearances: “In the documentary and in media interviews while the civil case was pending, Haddix ‘repeatedly and publicly disclosed her animosity towards the Court and opposing party PETA, as well as her intent to violate the Court’s Orders requiring the surrender of the chimpanzees,’” according to Goldsmith's memorandum. The memo also stated that Haddix “challenged the Court’s authority... expressly stating her intent not to comply... voicing various implied threats aimed at any law enforcement officers who might approach her business...”

Another government memo said: "Haddix ‘reveled in her ability to obstruct justice and delay the civil proceedings... seeking credit and adulation from future viewers for conduct which was portrayed then as akin to a type of David and Goliath situation...'"

The government further asserted that Haddix profited from these actions through media projects such as podcasts, merchandise sales related to her "safari," personal appearances online, and interviews connected with her claims about Tonka.

“Tonia Haddix’s lies about the death of Tonka were only part of a series of falsehoods that she told the District Court about her plans to properly care for the chimps in her custody,” said U.S. Attorney Thomas C. Albus. “She continued to lie, even as she pleaded guilty in March, as she was secretly keeping a new chimp in a cage in the basement of her home where she once confined Tonka. Justice is impossible if participants in the judicial system lie. This case should send a message that those lies will not be tolerated, nor will violations of plea agreements and pretrial release conditions.”

“This case is not about Tonia Haddix’s exotic animal business,” said Special Agent in Charge Chris Crocker of the FBI St. Louis Division. “Her sentence today reflects her blatant disregard of our judicial process by telling wild lies under oath in front of a federal judge.”

The FBI conducted the investigation into these events; Assistant U.S. Attorney Hal Goldsmith prosecuted.