Men who dragged shark by boat identified, banned from fishing event

A group of men who dragged a shark by a boat at a high rate of speed have been identified to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, which is investigating the matter.

One of the men in the video is wearing a “Sarasota Slam” T-shirt, which is a popular fishing tournament in South Florida.  Officials were quick to distance themselves from the video and condemn the men involved, banning them from their tournament.

A post on the Sarasota Slam's Facebook page on Tuesday says officials reported the identities of the men in the video to FWC, though FWC would not confirm their names.

“The Sarasota Slam is in no way affiliated with the despicable behavior in the video on social media,” the group wrote on Facebook.  “We do not want to give those individuals any more attention.”

FWC confirmed on Tuesday they are investigating the matter.  They say they take the incident very seriously, and it is too early to speculate which violations took place.

(Warning: Some people may find video disturbing)