Orangutan grabs man: watch moment zoo visitor is attacked through bars after taunting orangutan for a selfie

A viral video on social media shows the terrifying moment a man is grabbed by an Orangutan at Kasang Kulim Zoo in Riau, Indonesia.

The 19-year-old had jumped into the orangutan’s enclosure to capture a “funny” picture for social media, but later regretted his actions.

The orangutan, who is called Tina, didn’t appreciate the company and attacked the young man by grabbing him by his t-shirt through the bars.

Horrified onlookers tried to intervene by pulling the young teenager back, but Tina refused to loosen her grip.

The zoo has condemmed the event, saying the visitor has been “reprimanded.”

Here’s everything you need to know about what happened.

What happpened to the zoo visitor attacked by the orangutan?

The incident which took place at Kasang Kulim Zoo in Riau, Indonesia, involved 19-year-old Hasanal Arifin.

The teenager decided to jump the guardrail of the orangutan enclosure so he could get up close and personal with resident orangutan Tina.

Arifin explained that he had only ventured so close to catch a “funny” moment on his phone.

However, he wasn’t laughing after Tina, who didn’t appreciate the disturbance, grabbed the young teenager through the bars.

In the video, Tina can be seen sticking her arm out through the bars and grabbing hold of the teen who is in arm’s reach.

Holding onto him by his shirt, Tina pulls him close, before using her leg to grab onto his leg.

Arifin is pulled right up to the bars, with Tina lifting him nearly upside down as she pulls his shirt and tries to bite him through the bars.

Helpless onlookers looked on in horror, with one trying to intervene by trying to pull the teenager away from Tina’s grip.

Luckily the young teen was able to break free.

What has the teenager said?

Arifin has since sought forgiveness for his reckless actions.

The 19-year-old apologised for the incident stating: “I apologise to the Kasang Kulim Zoo for crossing the fence and I apologise for the viral video.”

What has the zoo said? 

The zoo has condemned the incident.

In a statement with local media, the zoo manager said: “What happened on Monday afternoon, the visitor jumped into the guardrail of the orangutan cage to take a video without the officer’s permission.

“The visitor has violated the rules by jumping over the guardrail and kicking the orangutan

“This is very dangerous and violates the rules. We have already reprimanded the man. Please take the rules seriously.”

Are orangutans dangerous?

Orangutans are not usually dangerous to humans, with the animal known for being timid and mild-mannered.

In the wild, orangutans will spend most of their lives living in trees and will rarely have contact with humans.

They only come down to the forest floor if absolutely necessary and generally are quite reserved.

In this case, the teenager entered the space beside the orangutan’s enclosure after jumping a guard rail.

This could have caused distress to the orangutan.

According to the Orangutan Foundation, they are known to bite when they feel threatened.

Orangutans are exceptionally strong, as they need this skill to climb trees and can accidently cause harm due to their super strength.