Endangered Whale Shark Butchered With Machete By Thugs

This is the moment cruel fisherman illegally butcher an endangered whale shark with a machete to sell its meat on the market.

The startling scenes were recorded by an onlooker on Sam Son Beach, in the city of Sam Son which is located in northern Vietnam’s Thanh Hoa Province.

Video Credit: AsiaWire

In the video, fishermen can be seen using a machete to cut the huge whale shark into chunks and remove its intestines.

Several men work together to butcher the huge animals and shift the massive chunks of meat they are hacking off.

Local media report the fishermen then sold the meat at a local marker.

The whale shark (Rhincodon typus) is considered endangered by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) due to the impacts of fisheries, bycatch losses, and vessel strikes, combined with its long lifespan and late maturation.

Nguyen Duc Cuong, a spokesperson for the local agriculture department said an investigation had been launched it identify those involved.

Local media report the actions of the fishermen were illegal according to local law and those responsible face fines of between 1 and 2 billion VND (33,524 – 67,049 GBP) if they are found to have broken fishing regulations.

It is unclear if the whale shark was caught by the fishermen or if it was beached and the investigation is ongoing.

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Story By: Alex Cope; Sub-Editor: Joseph Golder; Agency: Asia Wire Report;