A US tourist and influencer named Sam Jones caught on camera fleeing with a baby wombat could face the cancellation of their visa, according to an official statement.
An American tourist, allegedly captured on film taking a wild baby wombat and fleeing the scene, could face deportation from Australia if officials examining her visa determine that she has violated its terms.
A video that has circulated extensively on social media allegedly depicts Sam Jones, boasting 92,000 followers on Instagram, sprinting with a baby wombat towards a vehicle, as its visibly distressed mother pursues them.
The timing and location of the video remain uncertain; however, it was filmed at night on what seems to be a rural road in southeastern Australia, a region predominantly inhabited by wombats.
According to experts, the creatures featured in the video are common wombats, the sole species among three types of Australian marsupials that is neither threatened nor endangered. However, akin to all native creatures of Australia, they enjoy legal protection.
The Home Affairs Minister of Australia, Tony Burke, stated that the department is currently reviewing Jones’s visa to ascertain whether she has violated any terms of her residency. He implied that she might never be invited to return to Australia.
“Considering the intense examination she would face should she attempt to apply for a visa again, I would be quite astonished if she even attempts it,” he remarked in an email statement to CNN. “I eagerly anticipate the moment Australia bids farewell to this individual; I have little expectation of her return.”
Late Thursday, Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese weighed in on the matter, proposing that Jones might consider engaging with a different Australian creature that would be more inclined to offer a challenge.
“To remove a baby wombat from its mother, clearly causing her distress, is nothing short of an outrage,” he stated.
“I would recommend to this purported influencer that she consider exploring some other Australian wildlife.” Remove a baby crocodile from its mother and observe the outcome.
The video, which has allegedly been removed from an Instagram account that has since been set to private, as well as from a now-deleted TikTok account, depicts a woman dashing across the road while cradling a baby wombat.
“Just caught a baby wombat,” a man chuckles off-camera, seemingly alluding to Jones.
“Observe the mother, pursuing her,” he chuckles once more, alluding to the adult wombat that follows the woman onto the road.
The footage has left ecologists and wildlife carers appalled, as they assert that the abrupt separation of the wombat from her joey would have induced significant stress responses in both creatures.
“Yanking a baby away from its mother, running off with it, and having the infant dangling in one’s hands is certainly among the top things one should avoid,” remarked Professor Barry Brook, an ecologist at the University of Tasmania.
Wombats are generally not known for attacking humans; however, they possess remarkably strong claws that they utilize for burrowing into the earth. According to Brook, their application on human skin could lead to significant harm and the risk of infection.
Source: CNN, The Guardian.
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