One of the men believed to have been in the disturbing shark-dragging video that drew outrage after it was posted on social media this week has posted numerous photos showing him posing with wildlife in the past.
Officials with the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission said they've identified the men seen in the video, which shows a shark tied to the back of a boat being dragged across water at high speeds.
The video was initially posted on Instagram by Miami Charter boat captain Mark "The Shark" Quartiano, who said he was outraged by the video.
"FOR ONCE I MAY HAVE TO AGREE WITH @PETA," Quartiano wrote in the post, adding the hashtags #sowrong and #notcool.
FWC isn't releasing their names to the public and no arrests have been made, officials said in a statement Wednesday. NBC 6 also is not naming the men.
But on social media, many users have been circulating the name of one of the men, along with the photos of him posing with animals.
In one photo, the man is seen holding a pelican with two other people with the bird's wings spread out. In another he's hugging a pelican while holding its beak closed.
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Another photo shows the man among a group holding up a spotted eagle ray, a protected species. "Catching shark bait and whatnot" is the photo's caption.
Multiple photos show the man with Florida tarpon, which the FWC has made a catch-and-release species with limited exceptions. One of the photos is tagged #FWCsMostWanted.
FWC officials said it's too early to speculate as to what, if any, violations took place in the shark-dragging incident.
In the brief video, one of the men appears to say "look, it’s already almost dead," while pointing to the shark flopping across the water behind the speeding boat.
"The FWC would like to state that that the lack of respect shown in this video for our precious natural resources is disheartening and disturbing, and is not representative of conservation-minded anglers around the world," the FWC statement read.
