Two American nationals have been arrested following a highly reckless and disruptive stunt inside a monkey enclosure at the Ichikawa City Botanical Garden in Chiba Prefecture.

“Punch” is the name of the adorable baby monkey. There was no violence, thankfully. All of the animals are unharmed.

And the point of this idiocy?

It was later revealed that this appalling stunt was orchestrated purely as a promotional gimmick for a cryptocurrency meme coin.

  • jqubed@lemmy.worldEnglish
    41·
    4 days ago

    Post as quoted in the article from the group’s X/Twitter account:

    Gmemecoin,

    We’re aware of the stunt that took place early this morning, when one of our community members entered the Punch enclosure at Ichikawa Zoo in Tokyo dressed in our mascot costume and carrying a teddy bear version of himself.

    First and foremost, we are endlessly grateful for the cult we have built together and for a community that continues pushing boundaries and creating standalone virality out of thin air.

    You’re built different.

    That said, with our Season 1 Create to Earn campaign going live tonight, we want to remind everyone to respect local laws and never put yourselves, others, or any animals at risk.

    Wild energy is part of the culture, but safety always comes first.

    We have reviewed the footage from several angles, and we are happy to confirm that no monkey was touched or harmed during the stunt. From what we can tell, the sole intention was to give Punch a fresh new teddy bear to keep him company.

    To the team at Ichikawa Zoo: please check your DMs. We would like to donate ¥1,000,000 toward improving the monkey enclosure and supporting the incredible work you do caring for these animals.

    We hope you’re as hyped for Season 1 as we are.

    Quoted tweet for context.

    Memecoin Mode.

    EDIT: ¥1,000,000 ≈ US$6,300 or €5,400