It’s an orca in sheep’s clothing.

A SeaWorld employee has been posing as an activist for People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals since 2012, and tried to lure others into illegal actions, PETA said.

The activist known as Thomas Jones is actually Paul McComb, who is a human-resources employee at SeaWorld San Diego.

Jones attended meetings and protests at SeaWorld, used social media to contact other protesters for inside information and encouraged activists to participate in aggressive tactics against the company, according to PETA.

“SeaWorld knows that the public is rejecting its cruel orca prisons and is so desperate that it created a corporate espionage campaign,” said PETA Senior Vice President Lisa Lange. “Instead of creating a dirty tricks department, SeaWorld should put its resources into releasing the orcas into coastal sanctuaries.”

SeaWorld responded by saying that it is “focused on the safety of our team members, guests and animals, and beyond that we do not comment on our security operations.”

In an e-mailed statement, it declined to directly comment on Jones/McComb, but said that PETA “actively recruits” activists to work undercover at SeaWorld and other companies.

With Post Wires