Sam Jones: US influencer who snatched baby wombat has left Australia

American influencer Sam Jones has left Australia after a video she posted on social media sparked controversy. The video showed her briefly taking a joey from its startled wombat mother.

Australian Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke previously stated that his department was reviewing whether Jones' visa could be revoked. However, according to the BBC, Jones left the country voluntarily. Burke issued a brief statement on Friday celebrating Jones' departure, saying "It's a great time to be a little wombat right now."

Jones sparked outrage in Australia after posting a video of herself laughing as she picked up a joey from the roadside and ran away from its distressed wombat mother. The video also showed the joey making distressed hissing noises before Jones placed it back in the bush. Jones, also known as Samantha Strable, has nearly 100,000 followers on Instagram and describes herself as an "outdoor enthusiast and hunter." She has since set her account to private and deleted the relevant posts.

The video was quickly met with widespread condemnation, with Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese calling the incident "appalling." Foreign Minister Penny Wong called the video "distressing." Opposition Leader Peter Dutton said on Friday that he thought it was a "cruel act" and that he was "glad" the influencer had now left. An online petition calling for Jones to be deported from Australia garnered over 30,000 signatures.

However, as Jones has not been charged with any offense and is not considered a threat to the country, the government likely had no grounds to cancel her visa. In comments that were later deleted, Jones said that "the joey was carefully held for a minute in total and placed back next to its mother." She wrote, "They both walked back into the bush together completely unharmed. I never capture wildlife, and my actions are never intended to cause harm to them." But wildlife experts believe Jones' actions showed "blatant disregard" for local wildlife.

The Wombat Awareness Organisation said it was appalled to see a joey "apparently snatched and mishandled for ‘social media likes’." Suzanne Milthorpe, campaigns manager at World Animal Protection Australia, told BBC Newsday that posting such videos for "cheap content" was "unacceptable." She said, "For that joey, it would have felt like a huge predator picked it up and took it away."

Wombats are native to Australia and are protected by law throughout the country. Conservationists say that joeys have strong bonds with their mothers, and any separation can be distressing and harmful.