A fisherman was arrested Thursday after an investigation revealed he shot a pilot whale that was found washed up on a New Jersey beach four years ago, the New York Daily News has learned.
Federal investigators say tuna fisherman Daniel Archibald violated marine mammal protection laws when he shot the pilot whale from his boat with a World War II rifle in August 2011. A month later, the whale was found dead on a beach in Allenhurst, New Jersey.
"The bullet wound triggered an extensive infection that caused the whale to starve to death a month later," authorities said in a complaint obtained by the Daily News.
Archibald's boat "Capt. Bob" was stationed in New Jersey waters at the time the whale was shot, the investigation found. Ballistic testing of a World War II-era rifle that was found on his boat, called a Mosin-Nagant rifle, matched the bullet found inside the whale.
The 27-year-old fisherman from Cape May also posted a Facebook picture in August of a tuna head on a hook with the caption, "thanks a lot pilot whales," federal agents said.
It is illegal to hunt, capture, kill or bother marine animals, according to the Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972. An exception is allowed for professional fishermen who inadvertently hurt the mammals.
Archibald "admitted that he shot at the pilot whales with the Mosin-Nagant around the time the pilot whale had been shot," special agents said in the complaint, NJ Advance Media reported. He also "claimed that he 'sprayed' bullets at the pilot whales in an effort to chase them away and that at times the whales might have been close to the Capt. Bob."
Archibald faces up to a year in prison and a $100,000 fine. He is currently out on $10,000 bond, the Daily News reported.
