In 2023, NOAA Fisheries received a tip that a fisherman was killing bottlenose dolphins. The tip prompted a two-year investigation.
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — A Florida fishing captain who was found guilty of shooting and poisoning dolphins will serve a 30-day prison sentence and has been ordered to pay a $51,000 fine, as announced by the United States Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Florida on Friday.
The case began in 2023 when NOAA Fisheries received a report about a fisherman allegedly killing bottlenose dolphins. This led to a two-year investigation led by NOAA Fisheries in collaboration with the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission.
In the summer of 2022, prosecutors revealed that Zackery Brandon Barfield, a 31-year-old from Panama City, became angered by bottlenose dolphins consuming red snapper from his fishing lines. In response, he resorted to injecting methomyl, a dangerous pesticide banned by the Environmental Protection Agency due to its effect on the nervous system, into baitfish to poison the dolphins.
“The subject’s actions were intentional and heartless, and we’ll continue to pursue any harmful acts against marine mammals,” said Paige Casey, acting assistant director of the NOAA OLE Southeast Division. “Egregious crimes such as in this case have serious consequences.”
Barfield had been a licensed charter and commercial fishing captain in the Panama City area for more than a decade.
While in charge of fishing trips from December 2022 to the summer of 2023, officials said Barfield’s actions against dolphins became increasingly violent.
Prosecutors say Barfield noticed dolphins eating snapper from his fishing lines and used a 12-gauge shotgun to shoot at dolphins surfacing near his boat. He killed at least one immediately.
Investigators later uncovered a shotgun and a container of methomyl in Barfield’s possession.
“The defendant’s selfish acts are more than illegally poisoning and shooting protected animals – they are serious crimes against public resources, threats to the local ecosystem, and a devastating harm to a highly intelligent and charismatic species,” said acting United States Attorney Michelle Spaven.
NOAA Fisheries’ investigation revealed that Barfield shot at least five dolphins, with one confirmed dead, and fed at least 24 to 70 dolphins poisoned baitfish on trips he captained, officials said.
One time, Barfield shot a dolphin in the presence of two elementary-aged children, prosecutors said. Another time, he shot a dolphin while more than a dozen fishermen were on board.
“Barfield was a longtime charter and commercial fishing captain,” said Adam Gustafson, a federal environmental prosecutor. “He knew the regulations protecting dolphins, yet he killed them anyway — once in front of children. This sentence demonstrates our commitment to enforcing the rule of law. It should deter others from engaging in such conduct.”
Barfield was convicted of three counts of poisoning and shooting dolphins in violation of the Marine Mammal Protection Act and the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide and Rodenticide Act. His 30-day prison sentence will be followed by a one-year term of supervised release.
