Colorado police are looking for a strong arm robbery suspect that stole a monkey from a woman at a hotel parking lot; the two had met so the woman could sell the man the monkey - he had other plans.

According to the Sentinel a Missouri woman apparently traveled to Grand Junction to sell her pet monkey and agreed to meet the buyer, a man, in the parking lot of La Quinta Inn, 2761 Crossroads Blvd., today, according to Grand Junction police.



During the meeting, however, the man sprayed her in the face with pepper spray, grabbed the pet carrier holding the monkey and ran away. The encounter happened in La Quinta parking lot around 6 a.m.

The suspect was described to police as a Middle Eastern male, 35 to 40 years, 5 feet, 5 inches tall, with a thin build and a short beard. He was wearing glasses, a blue shirt and possibly a vest.

The monkey at issue, a black cap Capuchin monkey, is illegal to possess in Colorado, police said.