The mother of the boy who fell into a gorilla enclosure has lashed out at her critics, saying in a Facebook post that "accidents happen".
Michelle Gregg broke her silence on Sunday to say people were too quick to judge.
"I want to thank everyone for their thoughts and prayers today. What started off as a wonderful day turned into a scary one," she wrote in a Facebook post, which has now been deleted.
"For those of you that have seen the news or been on social media that was my son that fell in the gorilla exhibit at the zoo. God protected my child until the authorities were able to get to him. My son is safe and was able to walk away with a concussion and a few scrapes... no broken bones or internal injuries.
"As a society we are quick to judge how a parent could take their eyes off of their child and if anyone knows me I keep a tight watch on my kids. Accidents happen but I am thankful that the right people were in the right place today [sic]."
Harambe, an endangered silverback gorilla, was shot dead after the four-year-old boy fell into his enclosure at Cincinnati Zoo, Ohio, over the weekend.
The boy's parents had not been charged yet but local police said charges may eventually be laid, however it's unclear if the zoo will face charges.
A change.org petition has been signed by more than 160,000 people calling for the boy's parents to be "held accountable for their actions of not supervising their child".
"We believe that this negligence may be reflective of the child's home situation," says the page.
Newshub.
