Omotayo Adigun
American influencer Sam Jones has left Australia following a massive public outcry over a viral video showing her picking up a baby wombat, an act that sparked outrage among wildlife advocates and government officials.
Jones, who describes herself as an “outdoor enthusiast and hunter,” posted the now-deleted video on Instagram, where she has nearly 100,000 followers. The footage showed her lifting a baby wombat from the roadside, causing visible distress to both the animal and its mother. The joey was seen hissing in discomfort, further fueling public anger.
The incident drew sharp criticism across Australia, with Prime Minister Anthony Albanese calling it an “outrage” and Foreign Minister Penny Wong labeling it “dreadful.” Opposition Leader Peter Dutton also condemned the act, describing it as “cruel.”
Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke had ordered a review of Jones’s visa, but she departed the country before any official action could be taken. Confirming her exit, Burke remarked, “There has never been a better time to be a baby wombat.”
Public outrage also led to an online petition demanding her deportation, which gathered over 30,000 signatures. However, since Jones was not charged with a crime, legal experts noted that the government might have had limited grounds to revoke her visa.
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Wildlife conservationists strongly condemned the incident, calling it a reckless disregard for Australia’s native species. Suzanne Milthorpe, Head of Campaigns at World Animal Protection Australia, described Jones’s actions as “unacceptable,” stressing that wombats form deep bonds with their mothers and even brief separation can cause significant distress.
In a now-deleted response, Jones defended herself, claiming the wombat was “carefully held for one minute” and returned unharmed. However, her justification did little to calm the backlash, with critics accusing her of exploiting wildlife for social media content.
Following the uproar, Jones’s Instagram account was set to private, and the controversial video was removed. Meanwhile, a new TikTok account claiming to belong to her alleged that she had received “hundreds” of death threats and was struggling to cope with the intense backlash.