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Florida man pleads guilty in shark-dragging video case
TAMPA, Fla. – A Florida man has pleaded guilty in connection to a video of a shark being dragged behind a speeding boat.
Michael Wenzel, 22, pleaded guilty Thursday to charges of misdemeanour animal cruelty and using an illegal method to catch a shark. He was sentenced to 10 days in jail and 11 months’ probation.
The Tampa Bay Times reports Wenzel left the Hillsborough County courtroom without comment.
A second man charged in the case is awaiting trial. Charges were dropped against a third man arrested after the video surfaced in 2017.
In the video, a group of men laugh as they drag a shark by a rope behind a boat.
Wenzel also must serve 100 hours community service. Prosecutors asked for half those hours to be served at an animal shelter.
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Information from: Tampa Bay Times (St. Petersburg, Fla.), http://www.tampabay.com.
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