Charges dropped for 1 of 3 men connected to shark video

TAMPA, Fla. – Criminal charges have been dropped for one of three Florida men connected to a video of a shark being dragged behind a speeding boat.

The Tampa Bay Times reports that Assistant State Attorney Andrew Hubbard announced in Hillsborough County Circuit Court on Tuesday that two counts of aggravated cruelty to animals against 23-year-old Spencer Heintz would be dropped.

Michael Wenzel and Robert Lee Benac III each still face the two felony counts, along with a misdemeanour count each of illegal method of taking a shark. They have pleaded not guilty.

The video went viral last summer after a Miami sport fisherman criticized it on social media. Investigators with the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission determined the dragging took place June 26 in state waters off Egmont Key.

___

Information from: Tampa Bay Times (St. Petersburg, Fla.), http://www.tampabay.com.