Police investigating case of man trespassing into Singapore Zoo's rhino enclosure
Screengrab of a video posted to social media platform TikTok showing a man trespassing into the Singapore Zoo's white rhino enclosure and performing a backflip.
SINGAPORE: The police are investigating an incident in which a man trespassed into the Singapore Zoo’s white rhinoceros enclosure.
A video of the incident, posted to the account of TikTok user ralphwee_, shows a man in a face mask riding what appears to be one of the zoo’s trams.
He is then seen in the white rhino enclosure, with two of the animals in the background. He performs a backflip before scrambling to scale the fence and make his way out of the enclosure.
Checks on the TikTok account by CNA on Friday (Dec 18) showed that the video appeared to have been taken down or made private, though it had been uploaded to the accounts of other users on social media platforms such as Twitter and Instagram.
In a story posted to its official Instagram account, Wildlife Reserves Singapore (WRS) - which manages the zoo as well as the Night Safari, River Safari and Jurong Bird Park - said it was aware of the video.
“This is a reckless and mindless act which is socially irresponsible, extremely dangerous and simply disrespectful to wildlife and our animals,” said WRS.
“We appeal to the sensibilities of the social community out there - let’s not encourage copycat acts - this can put lives in danger,” it added.
“To the millions of others who have visited our parks, appreciated and shown our animals respect, we thank you for your graciousness and support.”
When contacted, WRS said the incident happened on Thursday (Dec 17) and that they had referred the case to the police.
The police confirmed to CNA that a report had been lodged, and said that investigations are ongoing.
According to the World Wildlife Fund, the white rhino, which is the second largest land mammal, is relatively unaggressive. It is officially listed as "Near Threatened" because of poaching for rhino horn.
