The American influencer left Australia on Friday after the government announced it was reviewing her visa in a video of her snatching a baby wombat from her mother.
Sam Jones, who describes himself as an “outdoor enthusiast & hunter,” made his Instagram account private after being widely criticized on the video on Thursday.
“There was never a good day to be a baby wombat in Australia,” Home Minister Tony Burke said in a statement after government officials confirmed that Jones had voluntarily flew out of the country.
In the video, Montana-based Jones lifts a wombat Joey with his front paw in the dark from the roadside, then escapes from his mother. “I caught a baby wombat,” she said as the man filming the laughs. She brings the wombat back to the roadside after a few seconds.
Burke said the visa conditions were being reviewed to determine whether immigration laws were violated.
“We can’t wait for Australia to see the behind the scenes of this individual. We don’t think she’ll be back,” he said in a statement received by the Associated Press.
“Take the baby crocodile from your mother and see how you get there.”
Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese added his voice to criticism.
“To take a baby wombat from your mother and cause pain clearly from your mother is just anger,” Albanese said.
“I propose to this so-called influencer. Maybe she’ll try other Australian animals. Take the baby crocodile from her mother and see how you get there, the Prime Minister added.
Jones, who also uses the name Samantha Strable, closed its social media channels to messaging and could not be reached for comment Friday.
Wombats are like common wombats and are also known as bare nose wombats. It is a protected marsupial that was only found in Australia.
Yolandi Vermaak, founder of Animal Care Charity Wombat Rescue, said separating young Wombats from their mothers creates a risk that mothers will reject offspring.
“My biggest concern is that we didn’t actually see Mom and baby reunion. When she put it down, it looked like a mess. It turned away from where the mother was last seen. So I don’t know if Mom and baby actually found each other again,” Vermac said.
Vermaak also asked Jones to say where the wombat is after the video showed Joey had skin disease.
“Baby has mangi and that’s a matter of time until you die in mangi,” Vermac said. “It’s important to find out where this happened and treat this baby and her mother as quickly as possible.”
