What happens when a man climbs a fence to the tiger enclosure at the Denver Zoo? Criminal charges.
Early in March, a brave (albeit stupid) individual thought it would be a good idea to climb the fence at the Denver Zoo and touch a sleeping tiger. He now faces criminal charges for trespassing. On March 18, 34-year-old Matthew Swearigen was walking along the public path at the zoo. He then decided to climb the fence to the new "The Edge" tiger exhibit and touch the sleeping tiger. Why? We've got no idea! Zoo officials said in a statement that Swearigen climbed the fence next to the catwalk in to touch the exhibit's star, Nikita, who was dozing on and off in an overhead catwalk. Swearigen did not technically enter the exhibit, according to the statement sent by Denver Zoo official Sean Anderson-Vie.
Neither the Swearigen nor Nikita the Amur tiger were injured during the climb-and-touch situation. Denver police intervened, and with the help of zoo security officers, Swearigen was swiftly removed from the Denver Zoo.
The "touching" happened the day after the Zoo officials opened the new "The Edge" exhibit. The new exhibit 18,200 sq. ft. area that gives the tigers more room than their previous enclosure. This allows guests to get a little more up close and personal with the tigers. So close in fact, that on a preview showing the tiger sprayed urine down on people from the raised catwalk.
The exhibit was designed to give visitors a sense of being inside an enclosure with the tigers. This obviously wasn't close enough for Swearigen.
According to the Denver police, they initially reported Swearigen jumped into the exhibit to touch the tiger, but the Denver Zoo wants to emphasize he did not actually enter the exhibit. The 34-year-old scaled the fence by the catwalk to reach the sleeping tiger. The Denver Zoo has expressed that the police will be immediately contacted if any more people are discovered trying to get into animal exhibits, or try something like Swearigen. Zoo officials are also looking into taking additional motions to discourage any future "explorers."
The safety of Denver Zoo’s guests, animals and staff is our top priority, and we take these matters very seriously,” the statement said. “Clearly identifiable barriers, including signage and fencing, are in place throughout the zoo, and our safety officers are on site 24 hours a day.”As you enter The Edge exhibit the a sign greets you saying "Are you being watched?" The answer is now, definitely, yes. For both animal and guest safety, a tighter eye will be kept on those attempting to get too up close and personal with the animals. At the end of the day, though, a 34-year-old should know better than to climb a fence to get up close to a dangerous animal... we all know what happened with Harambe, don't let the same thing happen to one of Denver's resident creatures!
