Sea lion discovered fatally shot on California beach in cruel mystery, officials offer $20k to help find killer
A baby sea lion died after being fatally shot at a California beach and federal law enforcement officials are offering $20,000 to anyone with information on the killer.
A baby sea lion died after being fatally shot at a California beach and federal law enforcement officials are offering $20,000 to anyone with information on the killer.
The two-year-old sea lion named Espy was found on Bolsa Chica State Beach in Orange County with a bullet in his chest.
A rescue team from Pacific Marine Mammal Center (PMMC) tried to save Espy, who was in critical condition, but the sea lion died overnight from its injuries.
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration officials are now ramping up their efforts to find out who is responsible for the cold-blooded killing.
We offered the reward in this case because the shot animal was found on a very public beach and we hope that the reward will help prompt anyone who saw or heard something to report it to us, NOAA spokesperson Michael Milstein told The Orange County Register.
A two-year-old sea lion named Espy died after being shot in the chest
The sea lion was spotted with his injuries on Bolsa Chica State Beach in Orange County
Shooting the sea lion was a violation of Californias Marine Mammal Protection Act, which prohibits the harassment, hunting, capturing, or killing of sea lions and other marine mammals, according to the NOAA.
Offenders of this act can be fined as much as $34,457 and can have to serve a year in prison. Anything used to commit the crime could also be confiscated by the government.
PMMC lead veterinarian and vice president of conservation medicine Alissa Deming described her teams experiences with Espy. The rescue crew named the sea lion.
She said the PMMC was flagged by someone who saw the sea lion acting strangely. But when they arrived at the beach, the injured mammal went back into the water because he got scared.
About two hours later, he came back to the shore probably because his condition was declining, Deming told The Orange County Register.
She said he was having trouble breathing. He was taken to the hospital, where it was confirmed that Espy was shot.
But Espys situation is not unique.
John Warner, the San Pedro director of the Los Angeles Marine Mammal Center, said that he has seen a steady stream of sea lions being shot.
Warner told The Orange County Register: At least three were patients that we picked up again with gunshots and then died in transit.
Those take an emotional toll because we put in a lot of time and care.
The NOAA is offering a $20,000 prize for information on the sea lions killer
He said their is a sea lion in the centers care that was shot in the jaw.
He could barely open his mouth, and we found out there was a bullet in there, Warner said.
Last year, several endangered Steller sea lions were found dead with evidence of human interference along the Copper River Delta in Alaska, the NOAA reported.
The organization offered a $20,000 reward last August for anyone that had any information that could result in a criminal conviction or civil penalty.
Espy went into the water after he was first spotted because he got scared, but came out onto the Bolsa Chica shore about two hours later
In 2021, another $20,000 incentive was issued for the deadly shooting of another California sea lion.
This sea lion was found with a bullet in its head.
Milstein said that any information that emerges about Espys death would be up to the US attorney to determine whether evidence prompted by the reward is sufficient to bring charges, he told The Orange County Register.
