“I’m Watching”: Monkey Steals Eastern Cape Woman’s KFC Meal at a Nature Reserve

• An Eastern Cape woman visited a nature reserve in Port St Johns and had her KFC meal stolen by a cheeky monkey who ran off with her food
• The woman filmed the monkey watching from the doorway before it walked in
• South Africans flooded the comment section with laughter, with many joking about the monkey's tactics

An Eastern Cape woman shared a video on 10 November 2025 on her Facebook page @zamekamadondile.mhiza, showing the moment a monkey stole her KFC meal at the Silaka Nature Reserve in Port St Johns. The woman, who works at the Department of Health and lives in East London, captioned the video:

"PSJ Silaka Nature reserve❤️ Wherever the monkey goes with my pillar (KFC) I'm watching😭🤣."

In the clip, the woman is recording a doorway where a monkey is watching from outside. The door was open, but she didn't expect that the cheeky animal would come into the living area and take the KFC meal she was planning to eat. As soon as the monkey grabbed the box, she started shouting to try and stop it from stealing her food.

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The monkey tried to run out of the door, but the box opened up and the food spilt out as it was trying to get past the gate. Without missing a beat, the monkey quickly threw the box aside, snatched up the actual chicken piece and ran off. The video went viral with over 1,000 reactions.

Mzansi reacts to the KFC heist

Netizens reacted to Facebook user @zamekamadondile.mhiza's clip with many laughing and some sharing advice:

@nathimadlamini joked:

"The last part got me... When it throws the box and pulls the original pillar 😂😂."

@mpangazitanozulu wrote:

"😂 It took the pillar 😂😂😂."

@anathingwenya said:

"It's gone, sister. Give up on it, my sister 😂😂😂."

@mlulekisigcawu shared:

"Natural Phara, long before the modern dangerous ones."

@nomawethubandla commented:

"KFC gone."

@makakukodlakela warned:

"Be careful, they are spoiling. Even the phones, they are taking them."

Why monkeys love stealing things

According to experts on CyberMunkiez, nkeys are clever and quickly learn that people carry all kinds of interesting things. They don’t only go after food. They grab sunglasses, phones, wallets, jewellery, and snacks. Some macaques even hold stolen items “hostage” until someone offers them food, and the more valuable the item is, the better the reward they expect.

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They also love attention. Taking something from a person gets an instant reaction, whether it’s shouting, chasing, or trying to bargain with them. For the monkeys, it’s fun and exciting, almost like live entertainment.

Watch the Facebook clip below:

More wild animal encounters in SA

• Briefly News recently reported on a popular coastal town in KZN that witnessed an unexpected moment when hippos took over the streets.
• A surprising moment unfolded at a skate park when a skilled handler arrived to carefully remove an Eastern Brown snake.
• West Coast National Park announced online that a leopard had been spotted for the first time in 170 years at the national landmark.

Source: Briefly News