American influencer apologizes for snatching Australian baby wombat

An American influencer who sparked outrage after posting a video of her snatching a baby wombat from its mother while in Australia apologized 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.