Fisherman shot dolphin in front of children
A Florida fisherman shot a dolphin in front of children and began poisoning others because they were stealing his catch, a court heard.
Zackary Barfield, 31, laced baitfish with pesticide and shot at dolphins from his boat in front of 'two elementary-aged children', prosecutors said on Friday.
Barfield, of Panama City, Florida, was sentenced to 30 days in prison and fined $51,000 for three counts of poisoning and shooting dolphins, according to federal prosecutors.
The fisherman pleaded guilty to the charges in February and will remain on supervised release for a year following his stint behind bars.
Federal prosecutors said that Barfield fed dolphins methomyl, a pesticide used to control insects in farming that can interfere with the nervous systems of mammals and humans.
'He knew the regulations protecting dolphins, yet he killed them anyway — once in front of children,' said Adam Gustafson, a lawyer for the department of justice's environment and natural resource division.
An investigation was launched into Barfield following reports that a Florida fisherman had been killing bottlenose dolphins between 2022 and 2023, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration said in a statement.
Barfield used a 12-gauge Remington Wingmaster shotgun to shoot at least five dolphins, killing one, according to prosecutors.
One of the shootings took place on a charter vessel with multiple witnesses present, according to NOAA. In a separate incident, he allegedly opened fire while two elementary school-aged children were on board.
'Based on evidence obtained in the course of the investigation, Barfield fed an estimated 24–70 dolphins poison-laden baitfish on charter trips that he captained,' NOAA said.
'He began placing methomyl inside baitfish to poison the dolphins that surfaced near his boat,' the US attorney's office said.
Barfield allegedly turned to killing dolphins after becoming frustrated that the highly intelligent mammals were 'stealing' red snappers from his clients' fishing lines. Dolphins are protected under the Marine Mammal Protection Act.
Barfield pleaded guilty to two counts of illegal taking of a marine mammal and one count of federally prohibited use of a pesticide, court documents seen by NBC News show. He also allegedly admitted prosecutors' narrative about his crimes is true.
Under the plea deal, Barfield will be forced to forfeit his shotgun, according to court documents.
Over the past decade, at least 21 dolphins have been killed by gunshot wounds, explosives, arrows and other sharp objects along Florida's south east coast, according to NOAA data.
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