£3,000 reward offered for information after monkey found abandoned on London bus

A reward of up to £3,000 is being offered for information that leads to any arrest and conviction after a monkey was found abandoned on a London bus.

The female common marmoset - since named Oyster - was discovered on a 302 bus waiting in Kensal Rise, north-west London, last Friday.

A mother had been unable to move her buggy down the bus aisle because a laundry bag was sticking out of the luggage bay.

When the bus driver pushed the bag out of the way, the monkey started "chirping and jumping".

The driver took the animal to the Metroline Bus Depot at Willesden bus station and raised the alarm.

The "frightened" marmoset, which the RSPCA said was "very stressed and dehydrated", was checked by a vet and rehomed at a sanctuary with specialist primate facilities.

Animal charity Peta is offering the reward in a bid to find whoever abandoned the animal.

Elisa Allen, Peta vice-president of programmes, called for anyone with information to come forward so that those responsible "can be held accountable before endangering anyone else".

Ms Allen added: "Abandoning an animal is an extraordinary betrayal. This monkey deserved care and protection, not to be discarded like rubbish."

The 'first of many'

It is feared to be the "first of many" abandonments after new legislation in April mandated that all primates kept in England are licensed and microchipped, the RSPCA said.

RSPCA London chief investigator Clare Dew, who is leading its probe, said the incident involving Oyster, who had not been microchipped, was "clearly intentional" and a "direct result of the new legislation".

Ms Dew said it was "something we feared would happen", adding that she would "be surprised if it's the last primate we see being dumped".

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RSPCA working to identify person who dumped animal

The driver and Metroline staff are helping the RSPCA trace the person responsible for dumping the monkey.

"No one noticed anything unusual on the bus before the monkey was discovered, but we'll be looking at CCTV and the logs for scanning on and off the bus to see if we can locate the person who left her onboard," the investigator said.

"But what we would say to anyone who is struggling to care for a pet or who cannot get a licence for any primate they have, please speak to specialists, vets or charities; don't abandon them as it can have tragic consequences."

Some 5,000 primates are kept as pets in England, according to government estimates.

The RSPCA handled 238 reports of primate neglect and cruelty between 2021 and 2025.

(c) Sky News 2026: £3,000 reward offered for information after monkey found abandoned on London bus