Tampa, Florida police arrested 20-year-old Jacob Pursifull for filming himself as he jumped into an alligator exhibit at Busch Gardens Tampa Bay.
Some people will do anything in order to get views on social media. That includes doing dangerous and sometimes illegal stunts.
During the video, Pursifull used a fake Australian accent to impersonate the late conservationist Steve Irwin.
According to Pursifull's social media account, he is an influencer trying to grow his audience by posting prank and stunt videos. However, between his TikTok and YouTube channels combined, he has less than 8,000 followers.
You can see video—not from Pursifull—here:
FOX 13 News spoke to Wildlife Rescue and Rehabilitation founder Vernon Yates about Pursifull's actions.
Yates said if one of the alligators had attacked Pursifull, the alligator would have had to be put down.
“He is nothing that anybody should look at [and say], ‘Wow, that was cool,’ because that wasn’t."
"That was stupid.”
You can see local news coverage here:
Social media seemed to agree the stunt was not the smartest decision.
\u201c@Not_the_Bee Influencer. \nThe damnedest thing about that... \nIs that its unfortunately true.\u201d— Not the Bee (@Not the Bee) 1686332903
\u201c@Not_the_Bee The Darwin Awards are going to have to introduce a new category just for influencers.\u201d— Not the Bee (@Not the Bee) 1686332903
\u201c@Not_the_Bee I have seen teens in Florida trying to take selfies with gators. Let them learn the hard way. For some, it\u2019s the only way they\u2019ll learn.\u201d— Not the Bee (@Not the Bee) 1686332903
\u201c@Not_the_Bee It's called Darwinism, let it happen.\u201d— Not the Bee (@Not the Bee) 1686332903
\u201c@Not_the_Bee Let's go gators!\u201d— Not the Bee (@Not the Bee) 1686332903
\u201c@Not_the_Bee Really, at that point, the alligator should be allowed to do whatever it wants with the kid. Just let nature take its course.\u201d— Not the Bee (@Not the Bee) 1686332903
\u201c@Not_the_Bee\u201d— Not the Bee (@Not the Bee) 1686332903
\u201c@Not_the_Bee I'm glad he wasn't eaten, but he should have been.\u201d— Not the Bee (@Not the Bee) 1686332903
\u201c@Not_the_Bee If anyone deserves to be eaten by an alligator....\u201d— Not the Bee (@Not the Bee) 1686332903
A spokesperson for Busch Gardens commented on Pursifull's stunt.
“We are thankful to hear that the individuals involved in illegally entering one of our animal habitats recently have been arrested and are facing charges for their dangerous actions."
"The safety and well-being of our guests, ambassadors, and animals is a top priority, and we are very grateful to law enforcement, particularly the Tampa Police Department and their law enforcement partners, for their swift action.”
Pursifull was charged with burglary, theft of services and trespassing.
He is currently being held at Orient Road Jail in Tampa on $8,500 bail.
Hopefully this experience was enough to prevent anymore dangerous and illegal stunts in the future.
Jane Rosenberg
Jane Rosenberg
Jane Rosenberg
Jane Rosenberg
Jane Rosenberg
