A social media influencer who sparked outrage after feeding a roast chicken to a crocodile has landed herself in even tougher trouble.
Jaylie Bonow, 28, appeared in the Brisbane Magistrates Court on Thursday on unrelated charges of fraud and computer hacking.
Bonow, who is from WA, is alleged to have used a restricted Queensland Health computer on August 24, 2017 without consent.
He also faces charges of unlawfully accessing and using the driving licenses of three Queensland drivers to carry out the alleged fraud.
The charges come after Bonow was criticized for boasting about feeding roast chicken to a saltwater crocodile on the banks of the Russel River in northern Queensland.
She revealed details of the brazen act in a video she posted to social media earlier this month and which has since been deleted.
“I’m in far north Queensland at the moment and I thought it would be a good idea to get a whole chicken and feed it to one of the crocodiles,” he said.
‘There are some really good crackers here and he loves them. Rest assured, I have stayed away from the (river) bank.
Jaylie Bonow (pictured), who sparked outrage after feeding a roast chicken to a saltwater crocodile, appeared in the Brisbane Magistrates Court on Thursday on unrelated charges of fraud and computer hacking.
Bonow, who has almost 84,000 followers on Instagram and uses the name Jaylie Tori online, then turned her phone around to show the massive four-metre beast emerging from the water.
The daring act has led to an investigation by Queensland’s Department of Environment, Science and Innovation (DESI) and Bonow could face a whopping $26,000 fine.
Bonow uploaded a video to social media after his court appearance Thursday and said he had a “very stressful morning” before addressing the “alligator incident,” which is unrelated to the charges he faces.
“I just want to reiterate that what I did was stupid, I’ve said it over and over again, and I didn’t know it was illegal,” he said.
“So if you don’t know, which many people didn’t, that feeding crocodiles is illegal in Queensland (in fact, it’s illegal throughout Australia), here’s your warning: don’t do what I did.
“Not only is it illegal, it’s fucking stupid.”
Police have alleged Bonow committed the offenses at the Queensland Health Chermside children and youth mental clinic, north of Brisbane.
Court documents show that she was working as a public official when the alleged crimes were committed, the courier mail reported.
His case will next be heard in the Brisbane Magistrates Court on November 4.
Mrs. Bonow’s crocodile trick attracted the attention of the authorities.
“Deliberately feeding crocodiles can pose a great risk to other visitors and increase the chances of an attack,” a DESI spokesperson said.
Bonow (pictured), who is from WA, is alleged to have used a restricted Queensland Health computer on August 24, 2017 without consent.
The 28-year-old filmed the brazen act on her phone (pictured), which showed the crocodile emerging from the water in the Russel River in northern Queensland.
“That’s why penalties have recently been increased for illegal behavior that puts lives at risk… (and) behavior that portrays, promotes or encourages people to feed them is totally irresponsible.”
The DESI investigation is understood to be ongoing.
In September, the maximum penalty imposed by courts for deliberately feeding or disturbing crocodiles was raised from From $6,452 to $26,615 in Queensland.
Local member for Barron River Craig Crawford said Ms Bonow should use her audience to spread common sense.
“Feeding crocodiles is not only stupid but also illegal and the fines are in the thousands – even pretending to do it sends a stupid message to others,” he said.
‘As residents of the Far North, regardless of people’s opinions on crocodiles, everyone would agree that feeding them changes their behavior and will make them walk closer, stalk the area and wait for humans.
Bonow previously described his decision to feed the crocodile as a “dumb mistake.”
Earlier this year, the Queensland government was forced to issue a warning after video emerged of a large crocodile eating a small shark that died in Rockhampton in February.
Wildlife officer Alexander Peters said he would be “extremely disappointed if people deliberately fed crocodiles to generate likes on social media.”
“Deliberately feeding crocodiles is extremely foolish and dangerous behavior as it can lead the animals to learn to associate people with food,” he said.
‘Previous incidents have shown that when a crocodile has been fed, it begins to approach other people in search of food, or stays in an area where it had previously been fed waiting for an easy meal.
“This can put unsuspecting people at risk and leave the animal vulnerable to being removed from the wild.”
Bonow previously described his decision to feed the crocodile as a “dumb mistake.”
“Yesterday I was very uneducated and had no idea that feeding crocodiles was illegal. Now I know that feeding crocodiles is harmful to them and to public safety because it changes the behavior of crocodiles,” he said.
“If I had known yesterday, I wouldn’t have made that silly mistake.”