Florida wildlife officials are investigating a “disturbing” video shared on social media that appears to show a shark being dragged by a rope behind a speed boat.
“The FWC takes this very seriously and is currently investigating this incident. We are also attempting to identify the individuals in the video and where it took place,” Rob Klepper, public information coordinator for the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, told the Bradenton Herald on Tuesday.
The video — which shows the shark being dragged above the water and bouncing off waves into the air several times — was shared on Instagram by Mark Quartiano, a self-proclaimed shark hunter who runs deep-sea fishing expeditions.
He told ABC News that he was sent the video via direct message on Instagram, but called the behavior “not sportsmanlike.”
“It was quite disturbing on my end,” he said. “I’d never seen something like that before.”
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