'Disgrace': Instagram influencer's reckless Bali motorbike stunt slammed online
An influencer has faced fierce backlash after filming himself and a bikini clad accomplice driving a motorbike off a dock and into the ocean in Bali.
Russian Instagram influencer Sergey Kosenko was criticised heavily following his upload of the dangerous stunt, filmed in the Bali region of Karangasem, to the platform four days ago.
Locals slammed his unsafe and careless act in comments to the post, arguing his contamination of the water with both the motorbike and its fuel showed blatant disrespect for Bali and its people.
“I’m Balinese and this is absolutely a disgrace. You call yourself influencers and yet you have no respect to the society you’re living with... We value ocean as a sacred place, yet you ruin it for the sake of content,” a local said.
“Very bad example guys! You have to think of the impact that occurs with oil and motor pollution in the sea,” another irritated social media user wrote.
“You literally threw motorcycle junk and its oil into our sea?” someone else said.
Others called for the self proclaimed “genius” to be deported from Indonesia.
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“Why don’t you did this stupid attraction in your country rather than mine?” another said.
On his Instagram profile, which has more than 4.8 million followers, Mr Kosenko describes himself as: “Genius. Millionaire. Playboy”.
Many don’t seem to agree with this view of himself however, despite the influencer claiming to have pulled the motorbike out of the ocean before donating it to a local.
“And yes, dear ocean defenders and nature lovers, we lifted the bike from the bottom and took it away,” he wrote in the caption of the video, which featured a Russian pop song with the lyric: “I want to go to Bali”.
Influencer defends shocking Bali act
In a post that has been removed from the platform, Mr Kosenko said he had apologised to the residents of Bali and claimed he had bought the motorbike rather than rented it.
He also claimed he was doing charity work while in Bali and called on his followers to help raise money for disadvantaged children.
Flouting laws prohibiting illegal dumping of waste into the environment in Indonesia carries a penalty of up to three years in prison and a fine of 3 billion Indonesian rupiah, equal to about A$280,590.
The Tanah Ampo Port, where the video was filmed, has reportedly been closed to the public for years.
Local police have seized the motorbike, which had been given to a fisherman, and will use it as evidence in their investigation, according to news site Coconuts.
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