Man Caught Cutting Beached Whale's Tail Off
Delray man in custody after hacking tail off for food
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ILIMANAQ, GREENLAND � AUGUST 27, 2007: (ISRAEL OUT) A whale's tail rises from the sea as it swims, near the village of Ilimanaq, August 27, 2007 , Greenland. Scientists believe that Greenland, with its melting ice caps and disappearing glaciers, is an accurate thermometer of global warming. (Photo by Uriel Sinai/Getty Images)
A Delray Beach man is in custody after he reportedly tried to cut the tail off a whale that washed ashore early Thursday morning.
Florida Fish and Wildlife agents are questioning James Hogan after he was found hacking away at the tail end of the whale, estimated to be between 10 and 12 feet long and 800 pounds, according to the Palm Beach Post.
"I didn't know it was illegal," Hogan told the Post, before he was hauled away. Hogan said he was fishing early Thursday morning when a passerby told him about the washed-up whale.
He said he started cutting off the tail so he could eat it.
"I'd probably broil or fry it," he said.
Unfrotunately for Hogan, it's a federal crime to mutilate a protected or endangered animal, even if its dead. The pygmy sperm whale falls under that category of "Do not touch dead or alive."
"I apologize to the state of Florida," Hogan told the FWC agents as he was hauled off. "I pay my taxes and I didn't know it was illegal. I do now."
Posted Thursday, Sep 2, 2010 - 10:18 AM EST
