(Photo : Photo by YASUYOSHI CHIBA/AFP via Getty Images)

A chimpanzee gang ripped off a young boy's face during a brutal attack near a nature reserve in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

It was reported that the Congolese boy named Dunia Sibomana was six years old back then when the primates attacked him but survived the ordeal.

The victim was accompanied by his brother and cousin, who both succumbed from their injuries from the chimpanzees.

The chimps reportedly torn off Sibomana's lips and right cheeks, which led to multiple surgeries on his face.

While the exact events that led to the incident remains unknown, chimpanzees have a track record of becoming violent and even attacking humans.

In recent years, related attacks have been recorded worldwide.

Congo Chimpanzee Attack

The 2014 incident occurred when the trio was playing near the reserve in the Congo, instantly killing his four-year-old brother and his cousin who succumbed to the injuries from the said attack.

Surviving the violent animal assault, Sibomana was saved by medics but needed facial reconstruction that time, the Daily Star UK reported.

Furthermore, the victim also lost a finger and a part of his ear during the chimpanzee gang attack. 

This led to the non-profit foundation Smile Rescue Fund for Kids to send the young boy to New York for a reconstructive surgery in 2015.

In 2016, the boy underwent 14 surgeries, which included a procedure where doctors had to transfer tissue and muscle from his forearm grafted to restore his lips.

In 2022, Sibomana was adopted by a wrestling coach named Miguel Rodriguez at Long Beach Middle School and his wife after living with two host families.

The Congolese survivor managed to win a Nassau County wrestling championship, which came several years after he became a permanent US resident in 2019.

Also Read: Caught on Cam: First Lethal Attack of Chimpanzees on Gorillas

Travis the Chimp

In previous years, related chimpanzee attacks have been reported not only in the Congo but also in other parts of the world, including at home where the simians have been treated as a pet.

In the US, one horrifying attack in 2009 involved a young chimpanzee named Travis, who attacked his owner's friend, ripping of her face, as well as her nose, ears, and hands.

It was February in Tennessee that year when Travis the chimp's owner Sandra Herold asked Charla Nash to visit her home and take care of the primate.

Despite knowing Nash for several years already, Travis went aggressive and violent towards his owner's friend, according to the organization Nonhuman Rights Project.

Based on previous documentaries and reports, Herold called the local police after beating and stabbing Travis but to no avail.

The police shot the wild animal dead upon arriving at her home.

Chimpanzee Aggressive Behavior

According to Frans de Waal, a biologist from Yerkes National Primate Research Center, chimpanzees are aggressive by nature, possessing brute strength and are known for engaging in warfare among other chimpanzee groups, where males kill other males.

They are also known for committing infanticide, as cited by the Scientific American.

The biologist added that aggression is a common aspect of the chimpanzee behavior, whether it is between or the same groups, exhibiting acts of mutilation; where they can go for the face, hands, and other parts of the body. By Louise Franco , Nature World News