American influencer who caused outrage after snatching baby wombat in Australia issues apology
Melbourne, Mar 15 (AP): An American influencer who sparked outrage after posting a video of her snatching a baby wombat from its mother while in Australia apologised on Saturday, saying she had acted out of concern for the young animal's welfare.
Australian authorities had threatened Sam Jones with deportation after she posted a video on her Instagram account of her running with a wombat joey in her hands from its mother on a roadside at night.
“I ran, not to rip the joey away from its mother, but from fear she might attack me,” Jones, who also uses the name Samantha Strable, posted on social media.
“The snap judgement I made in these moments was never from a place of harm or stealing a joey,” she added.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said the video of the young wombat being grabbed was “just an outrage.”
Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke said his department was investigating whether Jones had breached the terms of her visa before she left the country on Friday.
“There's never been a better day to be a baby wombat in Australia,” Burke said after she left Australia voluntarily.
Burke said he did not expect Jones would apply for an Australian visa again.
The animal appears to be a common wombat, also known as a bare-nosed wombat. It is a protected marsupial found only in Australia.
Montana-based Jones claimed she became “extremely concerned” when she found the two wombats on a road not moving.
“As wombats are so often hit on Australian roads, I stopped to ensure they got off the road safely and didn't get hit,” Jones said.
“However, as is seen from the video, when I walked up to them, the joey did not move or run off. I was concerned it may have been sick or injured, and made a snap judgement to pick up the joey and see if that was the case,” she added.
An unidentified man laughs as he films Jones saying: “I caught a baby wombat.” They both note the mother's sounds of aggression.
Animal welfare experts said Jones could have harmed the joey by dangling it by its two forelegs.
Jones said she returned the joey to its mother and ensured they both left the road.
“I have done a great deal of reflection on this situation and have realised that I did not handle this situation as best as I should have,” she said.
“I have learned from this situation, and am truly sorry for the distress I have caused,” she added.
Jones did not immediately respond on Saturday to The Associated Press's questions, including where and when the baby wombat was captured.
A wombat expert said the video revealed the joey had the skin disease mange and would die without treatment.
Jones also did not tell the AP where she was on Saturday.
View this post on Instagram
View this post on Instagram
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
Three company directors held in Rs 100-crore investment fraud in Kochi
Kochi (Kerala) (PTI): Police on Sunday arrested three directors of a firm accused of cheating hundreds of investors of over Rs 100 crore through a fake investment scheme linked to agricultural tourism here, officials said.
The accused were identified as Muraleedharan, Ashik Murali and Akhil Murali, all natives of Thrissur.
The arrests were made by the Kalamassery police in connection with a fraud involving ATCOS (Agri Tourism Cooperative Society), a firm headquartered at Pathadipalam here.
Police said the company had promised high returns by collecting investments from the public in the agricultural tourism sector, but allegedly cheated hundreds of people and fled with the money.
ATCOS was registered under the Multi-State Cooperative Societies Act and operated 13 branches across various districts in Kerala, besides a branch in Coimbatore in Tamil Nadu, officials said.
When investors failed to receive their promised returns or the invested amount, complaints were filed with the police.
Officials said around 54 cases have been registered against the firm in 32 police stations across the state, including 29 cases at the Kalamassery police station alone.
Following instructions from Kochi City Police Commissioner K S Mahesh Kumar, a special investigation team was formed under the supervision of Deputy Commissioner of Police (Law and Order) Shehensha and Thrikkakara ACP Manoj Kumar.
The team traced the accused to an apartment in Amala Nagar in Thrissur, where they had been hiding after secretly renting the flat, officials said.
The bank accounts of the accused have been frozen, and steps have been initiated to trace their assets, officials said.
Police also conducted a raid at the company’s office at Pathadipalam and seized several documents related to the case.
The accused were produced before the Judicial First Class Magistrate Court in Kalamassery, which remanded them to judicial custody and sent them to Kakkanad jail.
Police said they would seek the custody of the accused for further interrogation as the investigation continues.
