REUTERS/Mike Blake
A SeaWorld employee posed as an animal-welfare activist for years to infiltrate groups working against the theme park, a spokesperson for People for the Ethical Treament of Animals alleges. The group says the man they came to know as Thomas Jones may in fact be 28-year-old Paul McComb, a man whose online résumé shows he’s worked at SeaWorld since 2008, most recently in a human-resources position. Among other things, Jones sought advance information on protest tactics at SeaWorld facilities. “We are focused on the safety of our team members, guests, and animals, and beyond that we do not comment on our security operations,” a SeaWorld spokesman said Monday. “This is a responsibility that we take very seriously, especially as animal-rights groups have become increasingly extreme in their rhetoric and tactics.” McComb hung up on Bloomberg News when he was contacted and asked if he is also known as Thomas Jones.