A video in which a man chased a raccoon off the boat, after which he falls into water and drowns, initiated the investigation Agency for the protection of fish and wildlife Florida (FWC).
A lawyer from Florida Thomas cope has posted a video on Facebook where it quickly became «viral».
In the video the man yells at the raccoon, who, according to him, was hiding on the boat for several hours. The animal was discovered when the ship was about 20 miles from the shore.
«Get off my boat! – man shouting, cursing. – We have to push him.»
When scared, the raccoon fell into the ocean, no one pulled out.
In social networks users called the incident «disgusting» and «contemptible».
As reported by Tampa Bay Times, cope later apologized for his actions, adding: if he was on the shore, just released the raccoon.
«The animal was running around the boat, hissing and growling, we could not sail the boat. Raccoons can be rabid and dangerous, and the only solution that came to mind at the moment is to remove the raccoon from the boat, ‘ said the man. – I regret that it happened».
Protection Agency wildlife Florida said that it treats the incident «very seriously» and is asking anyone with additional information about the incident to call: 1-888-404-3922.
«It is too early to talk about what violations have taken place in the incident — said in a statement. But we believe that such disgusting cases of cruelty to animals has no place in our state or anywhere else.»
