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An arrest warrant was issued against a Maryland man who posted a video on Facebook showing him jumping over a federally protected pelican in the Florida Keys, authorities said.
Attorney General Dennis Ward said a Monroe County judge on Wednesday issued a warrant arrest against William Hunter Hardesty, 31, of Riva, Maryland, in connection with a 21-second video Posted on Facebook on March 7, showing that he was taunting a large Key West Pelican before jumping on the animal, causing a small laugh of the witnesses.
"Excuse me, if you do not get out of there right now, I'm going to call security," we hear a woman off camera before the pelican jumps Hardesty with a beak in her nose before escaping.
"I will continue to aggressively pursue crimes involving our precious natural resources," Ward said in a statement. "Our fish, our lobster, our rock crab, our deer and now our pelicans. These are other resources that attract people to our paradise. I will ensure that these resources are available to our grandchildren, great-grandchildren and future generations. "
The police are seeking charges of intentional feeding of pelicans, violation of the Migratory Birds Treaty Act and animal cruelty. Lt. Josh Peters of the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission requested a warrant from Judge Timothy Koenig of the Monroe County Court of Courts, who fixed the bond at $ 80,000 once Hardesty was arrested, Ward said.
Ward did not immediately return a message asking for his comment, but he said Thursday at the Miami Herald that he was not sure where the police would find Hardesty.
"They do not do it," he told the newspaper. "I think he's back in Maryland."
Hardesty, meanwhile, apparently found humor in the alleged act of animal cruelty, referring to the animal a few days later on his Facebook profile. He could not be reached for comment on Friday.
"Think about finding a pilican [sic] tattoo today !! he wrote.
In other publications, Hardesty said that he was "so hungry" that he could eat a pelican and asked his friends on the social networking platform if they wanted to join him. in Key West.
"A judge will not be happy about all those sarcastic, arrogant [posts], "An answer read.
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