Grand Canyon Squirrel Kicker
Submission 12,376
Overview
Grand Canyon Squirrel Kicker refers to an unidentified man who was seen kicking a squirrel off a cliff into the Grand Canyon in a YouTube video uploaded in August 2014. The video quickly sparked outrage online and prompted PETA to offer a $15,000 reward for tips leading to the identification of the kicker.
Background
On August 2nd, 2014, Jon Hildebrand[6] of Virginia posted a video to YouTube which showed two men at the Grand Canyon, one of whom kicked a squirrel over the edge. The video was quickly taken down. Hildebrand explained his state of mind when taking the video to the Associated Press, saying:
""I was in such utter shock. I thought, 'Do people do this at the Grand Canyon?' "
Hildebrand also explained at least one of the men was speaking French.
The video was quickly taken down and put up again by AP News[7] also on August 2nd, within a week the video has gained over 250,000 views.
Notable Developments
Park's Response
On August 4th, 2014, the Grand Canyon National Park officially stated they were looking into the incident, with Kirby-Lynn Shedlowski,[2] a parks spokeswomen explaining:
"It is under investigation. We are working with YouTube to see if we can get any additional information."
The investigation was covered by many news sites including Jezebel[8], Daily Mail[9] and Fox News.[10]
PETA Reward
On August 8th, 2014, The Independent[4] published an article titled "Squirrel kick video: £10,000 reward offered to track down French men who kicked squirrel into Grand Canyon." The article explained animal rights group PETA was offering a reward of $16,870 to whoever can aid the police in finding the two men in the squirrel video. The reward was a result of branches of PETA in France, the United States and the United Kingdom pooling their resources. The article went on to explain that if the men are caught, they could be forced to pay up to a $5,000 fine or spend up to six months in jail.
Search Interest
External References
[1] The Washington Post – Grand Canyon investigating squirrel-kicking video
[2] The Huffington Post – Man Appears To Kick Squirrel Into The Grand Canyon In GRAPHIC Video
[3] The Washington Times – Men kick squirrel into Grand Canyon on video; PETA offers reward
[4] The Independant – Squirrel kick video: £10,000 reward offered to track down French men who kicked squirrel into Grand Canyon
[5] New York Daily News – Two nearly naked men lure squirrel to edge of Grand Canyon with treats, then kick it over
[6] ABC News – Virginia Resident Catches Squirrel Kick on Video
[8] Jezebel – Deranged Psychopaths Kick Squirrel 6,000 Feet Down Into Grand Canyon
[9] Daily Mail – Heartless thug who kicked a squirrel into the Grand Canyon in a YouTube clip has a £10,000 bounty put on his head
[10] Fox News – Grand Canyon investigating squirrel-kicking video
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