Stay up to date with notifications from The Independent

Notifications can be managed in browser preferences.

Jeff Bezos confronted on stage by animal rights activist: 'You are the richest man on the planet'

'I have been inside Amazon’s chicken farms where animals are criminally abused'

Emma Snaith
Friday 07 June 2019 10:03 BST
Comments
Animal welfare protester interrupts Jeff Bezos at Amazon event

Your support helps us to tell the story

From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.

At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.

The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.

Your support makes all the difference.

Jeff Bezos, the world’s richest man, was confronted on stage by an animal rights activist protesting conditions at a California poultry farm that supplies Amazon.

The protestor was first heard heckling the Amazon founder from the audience during his “fireside chat” on the fourth day of his company’s conference in Las Vegas.

She then rushed onto the stage, evading both event security and Mr Bezos’ personal security reported to cost $1.6m (£1.25m) a year.

“I have been inside Amazon’s chicken farms where animals are criminally abused,” the activist said as security surrounded her. "Jeff, you are the richest man on the planet. You can help the animals."

Mr Bezos and Jenny Freshwater, another Amazon executive on stage at the time, sat calmly as the activist was removed. “Do you have a response to that?” Mr Bezos said.

Priya Sawhney, 30, rushed onto the stage during Jeff Bezos’ “fireside chat”
Priya Sawhney, 30, rushed onto the stage during Jeff Bezos’ “fireside chat” (AP)

Animal-rights group Direct Action Everywhere (DxE) later claimed responsibility for the stunt and identified the protestor as Priya Sawhney, 30, of Berkley, California.

"Animal abuse is the crime here, not animal rescue," Ms Sawhney said in a press release published after the incident.

"It’s time Amazon and Jeff Bezos take a stand for transparency, rather than actively suppressing the truth."

Ms Sawhney was held on suspicion of misdemeanour trespassing and may face more serious charges, Las Vegas police officer Laura Meltzer said.

Amazon’s first re: MARS conference is a larger version of an invitation-only 200-person event the company has organised for the past four years to discuss machine learning, automation, robotics and space.

Mr Bezos was explaining plans to send satellites into space when Ms Sawhney appeared on stage. He founded the rocket company Blue Origin in 2000 and has said he will sell $1bn in Amazon shares each year to fund it.

Additional reporting by AP

Join our commenting forum

Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies

Comments

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in