A U.S. influencer, who gained attention for a video showing her taking a wild baby wombat away from its distressed mother in Australia, has expressed her deep remorse for the incident. Sam Jones, who identifies as an “outdoor enthusiast and hunter,” has reported receiving thousands of death threats since the footage surfaced.
In the controversial video, Jones is seen laughing as she picks up the joey along the roadside, while the mother wombat pursues them. The act has provoked significant outrage, prompting Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese to challenge her to attempt a similar act with a baby crocodile.
Jones’ explanation and apology
In a detailed Instagram post, Jones claimed she intended to ensure the safety of the animals by moving them off the road. She explained that while the mother wombat managed to escape, the baby remained in danger, leading her to scoop it up for its protection. “I ran across the road not to rip the joey away from its mother, but from fear she might attack me,” she stated, attempting to clarify her actions.
“The snap judgement I made in these moments was never from a place of harm or stealing a joey,”
she added. Jones insisted the video was “not staged, nor was it done for entertainment,” noting that her excitement led her to act impulsively and without providing sufficient context for viewers.
Controversy over animal culling laws
In her statement, Jones criticized Australia’s animal culling laws, which include regulations on wombats, kangaroos, and other wildlife. While wombats are protected under Australian law, permits can be issued for culling under specific circumstances, a practice that has sparked nationwide debate.
Following the incident, an online petition advocating for her deportation amassed over 40,000 signatures. Tony Burke, Australia’s Home Affairs Minister, indicated that his department was reviewing the possibility of revoking Jones’s visa, although it appears she departed the country voluntarily.
With over 95,000 followers on Instagram, Jones, who also goes by Samantha Strable, has been criticized by conservationists for her behavior, which they described as “appalling” and potentially harmful to the animals involved. The Wombat Protection Society expressed its shock at the mishandling of the joey, suggesting that the act was motivated by a desire for “social media likes.”
The organization highlighted the risk posed to the joey, stating that it was placed back onto a road, endangering its safety. “It remains unclear if the joey was reunited with its mother,” they noted. In the footage, Jones can be heard exclaiming, “I caught a baby wombat,” while the joey hisses and struggles in her grasp, drawing laughter from the individual filming.
In her now-deleted post, Jones captured the moment with the caption, “My dream of holding a wombat has been realised! Baby and mom slowly waddled back off together into the bush.” Responding to criticism, she later stated, “The baby was carefully held for one minute in total and then released back to mom. They wandered back off into the bush together completely unharmed. I don’t ever capture wildlife that will be harmed by my doing so.”
In the aftermath, animal rights advocates, including PETA, have condemned Jones’s actions, labeling the video as “wildlife-exploiting content.” They called on the public to cease treating wildlife as mere props for entertainment.