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Crime

Fisherman Charged With Stabbing Bait-Stealing Sea Lion ~ Newport Beach

2:25 PM PDT on August 30, 2007

Sea Lion

The Los Angeles Times reports:

Hai Nguyen, 24, of Garden Grove was charged with a misdemeanor count of taking and "attempting to harass, hunt, and kill a California sea lion," according to documents filed in U.S. District Court in Santa Ana this morning.

The offense carries a maximum penalty of one year in federal prison and a $20,000 fine.

Nguyen was arrested in Newport Beach on July 27 for allegedly stabbing a California sea lion repeatedly with a steak knife after the animal stole his bait. The sea lion, which was swimming near the dock Nguyen was fishing from on Balboa Peninsula, was apparently so close that the fisherman could reach down and stab the animal.

The animal didn't die from its wounds right away, so it had to be euthanized.

Photo by Mike Baird via Flickr

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