Four Dolphins Found Shot Dead on San Diego Beach
Authorities are investigating the suspicious shooting deaths.
June 18, 2007 — -- Wildlife authorities say it was troublesome, but not unheard of, when a dead dolphin washed up north of San Diego looking as if it had been caught in a fishing net.
But then another dolphin was found along the same stretch of beach, and then others. Between May 29 and June 5, a total of five dead dolphins washed up on the shore, four of them shot in the head.
"They are intelligent animals that don't bother people," said special agent Michelle Zetwo of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. "It's hard to believe that somebody would do something like this."
Investigators from NOAA are trying to find out what happened.
"Maybe they all got shot at the same time.," Zetwo said. "We're gonna run a forensic analysis on the bullet fragments we recovered to determine if they possibly came from the same weapon."
Dolphin shootings are rare and illegal. Authorities have offered a $2,500 reward for information, but unless someone comes forward this mystery might never be solved.