Overview
- A long-tailed macaque grabbed 19-year-old Oliver Lloyd’s phone at Bali’s Uluwatu Temple and ran into the temple forest.
- The theft, which occurred on June 15, left the device missing for more than an hour before the couple used the Life360 tracker to locate it and a temple guard retrieved it.
- When recovered the phone contained a lengthy video and several close-up selfies taken while the monkey held the device, including some risqué images.
- Uluwatu’s macaques are known for bold interactions with visitors and for stealing items like phones, sunglasses and jewellery, behavior often linked to trading stolen goods for food and to their cultural role as temple guardians.
- Health officials and reporters warn that macaques can bite or scratch and may carry infections, so visitors are advised not to touch or feed the monkeys and to seek immediate care for any wound.