They were going bananas!

Viral photos showing wild monkeys on the loose in New Jersey sent cops on a frantic search this week — but officials now say it was likely an AI-generated hoax.

The phony images showing scores of primates running wild at Georgia King Village apartment complex in Newark triggered panicked calls to authorities, leading police on a frenzied hunt Thursday morning, according to Newark Public Safety Director Emanuel Miranda, PIX11 reported. 4

One image showed two monkeys rummaging through a dumpster.

Officers scoured the area and inside the buildings, but the animals were nowhere to be found, Miranda said.

“Officers have not located any monkeys,” he told the outlet, noting the city’s animal control officers also received a similar bogus report on Wednesday.

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