Baby seal 'stabbed several times' as police launch manhunt for suspect
Police are searching for a man who stabbed a baby elephant seal multiple times on a beach cove.
The defenceless creature had been near an apartment block in Neskowin, Oregon, before it was viciously knifed between 8 and 11.30pm on March 16.
Fortunately, the animal miraculously survived the attack and has mostly recovered, according to authorities.
The seal was treated by the Marine Stranding Team before it was relocated, officials said. It began to heal by mid-April with no signs of lasting injuries.
Investigators have now appealed to the public to help them identify the attacker and NOAA has released a sketch matching his description.
Authorities describe the suspect as a white man standing at about 5 feet 10 inches with black-and-white hair, a groomed beard, and a 'large gap' between his front teeth.
A witness told officials he was sporting thick-lensed aviator glasses, dark trousers, a thin blue-and-light-green fleece top, and a low-profile black cap with a logo depicting an orange four-track excavator with the word 'timber' on it.
NOAA are also seeking a vehicle seen in a parking lot next to the cove behind some apartments.
The inside of his dark blue 1990s Dodge or Chrysler van was described as cluttered and the rear passenger window on the driver's side was covered in plastic.
Michael Milstein, a public affairs officer with NOAA told The New York Times: 'Young elephant seals like this often spend time on their own, learning to hunt and growing larger, before eventually returning to breeding areas in and around the Channel Islands off Southern California'.
The federal Marine Mammal Protection Act prohibits harassing, harming, killing or feeding wild elephant seals and other marine mammals.
Violators can face federal criminal penalties of up to $100,000 (£75,000) in fines and up to 1 year in jail.
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