In 2007, Ndeze’s mother, Safari, was brutally murdered, along with four other adult gorillas, including silverback Senkwekwe.  

Several days after the massacre, Ndeze was found clinging to her brother’s back. She was too young to survive without her mother’s milk, so the vets intervened and relocated her to a temporary facility in Goma where she met Ndakasi. This is where the pair became close friends before moving permanently to the sanctuary in 2007.