An Oregon man has been charged after authorities say he unlawfully caught and physically handled protected bluntnose sixgill and broadnose sevengill sharks in Washington’s Puget Sound.
The Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife released body-worn camera video showing an officer questioning 27-year-old Connor Seifert during a June encounter in Pierce County, Washington.
In the footage, the officer reminds Seifert that he is aware of the state’s shark regulations, including the rule that sixgill sharks cannot be taken fully or even partly out of the water.
A still image from video shared by the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife, which officials say shows a shark being held by the tail in footage allegedly posted by the suspect. (WDFW)
The officer also describes the harm caused when a sixgill shark is dragged toward shore, climbed on or handled in a way that leaves its gills exposed to air. He notes that Puget Sound serves as an important nursery habitat for these sharks and says there is a documented link between capturing them at that life stage and the death of unborn pups carried by pregnant females.
According to the officer, the stress of being fought and pulled to shore can leave the sharks exhausted, potentially killing their offspring and threatening the future return of sixgill and sevengill sharks to Puget Sound.
Wildlife officials said the confrontation followed months of monitoring Seifert’s activity and social media posts, eventually leading officers to set up surveillance in an effort to catch an alleged illegal shark catch in progress.
A still image officials say the suspect posted on social media, allegedly showing him seated on a shark’s back while holding its mouth open. (WDFW)
He has been charged in Pierce County with nine counts of unlawful recreational fishing in the second degree and one count of making a false or misleading statement to a public servant. The first is a misdemeanor and the second is a gross misdemeanor.
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Misdemeanors carry up to a $1,000 fine and 90 days in jail if found guilty and gross demeanors carry up to a $5,000 fine and a year in jail.
A broadnose sevengill shark. (Anadolu via Getty Images, File)
“Fishing for sixgill and sevengill sharks is unlawful, and unfortunately, officers are seeing a growing number of online posts showing these sharks targeted and then unlawfully removed from or partially removed from the water,” the department said in a post about Seifert’s charges.
Seifert claimed that he hadn’t been targeting the sharks and that he had accidentally caught them, but videos he posted to social media that allegedly showed him holding a shark’s mouth open, while sitting on its back and holding it by its tail on the shore while it attempted to get away paint another picture.
The department said it has gotten 14 complaints about Seifert, mainly connected to his allegedly targeting the sharks.
A Washington State ferry crosses the Puget Sound toward Seattle. (Corbis via Getty Images)
“Puget Sound acts like a nursey for sixgill and sevengill sharks before they head out to the ocean, the department said.
The department added, “This is one of the primary reasons why it is unlawful to target these sharks locally, as the anglers fishing for these creatures are targeting them during a highly volatile era in the animals’ lives.”
Both shark species are listed as “Species of Greatest Conservation Need” in Washington State.
Bluntnose sixgills are categorized as “near threatened” and broadnose sevengills are “vulnerable,” according to the International Union for Conservation of Nature.
