A Florida man who dragged a shark to death behind a friend’s boat has just been sentenced to ten days in jail.
Robert Benac, 3rd, who is 30 years old, made a plea deal where he will serve time in the Hillsborough County jail over five weekends, pay a $2,500 fine, perform 250 hours of service at an animal shelter, and lose his fishing license for three years. In pleading guilty to a misdemeanor charge of animal cruelty, Benac avoided going on trial for a more serious felony charge of aggravated cruelty to animals.
The dragging incident occurred in July, 2017, near Egmont Key, off the entrance to Tampa Bay. Benac and two friends posted a video showing the shark being dragged at a high speed behind their 22-foot boat, while they were laughing. The shark died. The video went viral. (You can see it below.)
After seeing the video, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission started an investigation. They uncovered other videos of the three men shooting a shark and pouring alcohol down the throats of live fish.
Michael Wenzel, 23, who drove the boat, accepted a similar plea deal in February. He too is required to serve ten days in jail over five weekends. Charges were dropped against the third man on board the boat. Read more:
