An American influencer who caused outrage by snatching a baby wombat from its mother has left Australia – amid concerns the “disorientated” marsupial may not have refound its parent.

Sam Jones, who describes herself as an “outdoor enthusiast and hunter”, left the country on Friday after the Australian government said it was reviewing her visa.

In a now-deleted video to her 92,000 followers on Instagram, recorded at an unknown location, Jones says: “I caught a baby wombat” as a man filming her laughs.

She returns the animal to the roadside after several seconds.

Now, there are concerns the baby wombat may have been left to fend for itself – and an animal welfare expert has warned it has a potentially fatal skin disease.

Yolandi Vermaak, founder of animal care charity Wombat Rescue, said separating the youngster from its mother created a risk the parent would reject her offspring.

“My biggest concern is that we didn’t actually see mum and baby getting reunited,” Ms Vermaak said.

“When she put it down, it looked disorientated. It was turned away from where the mother was last seen. So we don’t know if mum and baby actually found each other again.”

Ms Vermaak said Ms Jones should say where she left the wombat after the video showed the joey had a skin disease.

“The baby has mange and it’s a matter of time before it dies of mange, so it’s important for us to find where this happened and to get this baby and its mum treated as soon as possible,” Ms Vermaak said.

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Ms Jones’s actions drew fierce criticism from politicians. Australia’s Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said she had clearly caused “distress” in the marsupial’s mother and described her behaviour as “just an outrage”.

Home affairs minister Tony Burke, speaking after a government official confirmed Ms Jones had left the country voluntarily, said: “There’s never been a better day to be a baby wombat in Australia.”

Previously, he said he could not wait for “Australia to see the back of this individual”.

The wombat appears to be a common wombat, also known as a bare-nosed wombat. It is found only in Australia and is a protected marsupial.

Ms Jones, who also uses the name Samantha Strable, closed her social media channels to messages and could not be reached for comment on Friday.

Tesla, run by Donald Trump cheerleader Elon Musk, has warned US officials it risks being exposed to “disproportionate” retaliatory tariffs under the president’s escalating trade war.

The electric carmaker raised the issue in a letter to the US Trade Representative’s (USTR’s) Office on the same day Mr Trump bought a Tesla car in a show of support for his close ally after a bloodbath for the company’s shares.

Investor concerns, mostly linked to the trade war, have pushed Tesla’s market value 50% down from its December peak – a hit of roughly £800bn.

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The backlash against the trade war intensified this week when Tesla suffered its worst daily loss in five years as part of broader stock market falls on fears that US consumers and businesses are now facing the prospect of a recession.

The declines at Tesla were also linked by market analysts to domestic anger over Mr Musk‘s work in government to shrink its size through leadership of the so-called Department of Government Efficiency.

Tesla’s letter was one in a growing mailbag, with businesses widely complaining about the threat of rising costs and red tape.

It was not clear who wrote the Tesla document, as it was unsigned, but it stated it was important to ensure that the Trump
administration’s efforts to address trade issues “do not inadvertently harm US companies”.

Tesla said it wanted to avoid retaliation of the type it faced in prior trade disputes, which resulted in increased
tariffs on electric vehicles imported into countries subject to US tariffs.

Canada and the EU are among nations to have responded with counter measures after US tariffs on all steel and aluminium imports came into effect this week.

“US exporters are inherently exposed to disproportionate impacts when other countries respond to US trade actions,”
Tesla said in the letter.

“For example, past trade actions by the United States have resulted in immediate reactions by the targeted countries, including increased tariffs on EVs imported into those countries.”

Mr Trump is considering imposing significant tariffs on vehicles and parts made around the world in early April.

Such duties were initially confined to Canada and Mexico but later mostly suspended for four weeks amid complaints from US carmakers.

The president has said they will return on 2 April, alongside “reciprocal” tariffs which are widely expected to hit the European Union for the first time.

Tesla’s letter warned that protectionist policies designed to bolster US manufacturing and jobs were further harmful as “certain parts and components are difficult or impossible to source within the United States”.

It called for a phased approach to allow more time to bolster supply chains.

“As a US manufacturer and exporter, Tesla encourages USTR to consider the downstream impacts of certain proposed actions taken to address unfair trade practices,” the EV maker concluded.

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The document builds on wider pressure to force a U-turn, with industry body Autos Drive America declaring this week that the tariff regime will harm production and earnings, with sales also set to face challenges as tariff costs are reflected in prices.

“Automakers cannot shift their supply chains overnight, and cost increases will inevitably lead to some combination of higher consumer prices, fewer models offered to consumers and shut-down US production lines, leading to
potential job losses across the supply chain,” it wrote.

Jewish protesters have stormed Trump Tower in the city of New York, demanding the release of a pro-Palestinian activist arrested by immigration officials.

At least 150 people poured into the building’s lobby in midtown Manhattan to demonstrate against the detention of Mahmoud Khalil, who led Columbia University protests in 2024 against Israel’s war in Gaza.

The group from Jewish Voice for Peace carried banners, wore red shirts reading “Jews say stop arming Israel” and chanted “Bring Mahmoud home now!”

Local police said 98 were arrested on charges including trespassing, obstruction and resisting arrest.

Donald Trump previously described Mr Khalil, 30, who has lawful permanent resident status in the US, as “anti-American”. He is married to an American citizen.

The postgraduate student, from Columbia University’s school of international and public affairs, has been a prominent figure in the university’s pro-Palestinian student protest movement.

This week, his deportation was put on hold while his lawyers challenged his detention at an immigration detention centre in Louisiana. On Saturday, he was arrested outside his university residence in Upper Manhattan.

He has not been charged with a crime.

US secretary of state Marco Rubio has claimed he has reasonable grounds to believe Mr Khalil’s activities or presence in the country could have “serious adverse foreign policy consequences”.

On Thursday, Mr Khalil’s lawyers asked a federal judge to release him from immigration detention.

They argued that President Trump’s administration targeted him for deportation because of his activism, and his detention is a violation of the US Constitution’s First Amendment protections for freedom of speech.

Separately, his lawyers asked the court to block Columbia University from sharing student disciplinary records from campus protests with a Republican-led US House of Representatives committee.

Mr Khalil’s case has become a flashpoint for Mr Trump’s pledge to deport some activists who participated in the wave of protests on US college campuses against Israel’s military assault on Gaza following the October 2023 attack by the militant group Hamas.

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Mr Trump’s administration has said pro-Palestinian protests on college campuses, including at Columbia, have included support for Hamas and antisemitic harassment of Jewish students.

Last week, the administration said it cancelled grants and contracts worth about $400m (£309m) to Columbia because of what it describes as antisemitic harassment on and near the school’s campus.

Student protest organisers have said criticism of Israel and its actions is being wrongly conflated with antisemitism.