After Sharing This Video He Took Of A Shark, This Man Almost Landed In Prison

In a video that was recently shared online, a man managed to catch a shark with his fishing rod. The man was on a fishing trip at the Huntington Beach Pier in California. But he didn't expect to find a white shark, an endangered species that normally receives special protection...

Shark
© Getty Images
Shark

However, the incredible scene in which the man pulls up a white shark with his fishing rod immediately caught the attention of the California Department of Fish and Wildlife. The government agency has opened an investigation to find out how the white shark had ended up at Huntington Beach Pier.

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Andrew Hughan, the agency's public relations officer, told the LA Times:

"We have seen this video and our legal department is investigating the possibility of opening an investigation".

The fisherman would normally have had to release the shark because, although he has the right to catch it by mistake, according to California law, he is under obligation to release it back into the sea. Hughan explained this himself:

"It is forbidden to capture one and you can not bring it home as a trophy."

'The fisherman should have cut the line when it surfaced,' said Huntington Beach Marine Safety Lt, Claude Panis, who also explained that a catch like this could result in a $10,000 fine.

In the video above, we don't actually see the man release this white sharkback into the ocean and it is actually difficult to determine whether the shark indeed belongs to this species. The intended investigation will hopefully be able to clear this up.

This Shark Would Not Let Go of This Man's Arm (Video) This Shark Would Not Let Go of This Man's Arm (Video)