Man fined almost £10,000 for beating baby Great White shark to death with metal pole in Australia

An Australian man has been fined £10,000 for ramming a baby Great White Shark with his boat, then beating it to death with a pole.

 Justin Adam Clark, 40, was prosecuted after witnesses told authorities he had used his boat to herd the shark into shallow waters south of Sydney.

 Wollongong Local Court heard that Clark then used the boat to ram the shark several times.

 A rope was tied to the animal's tail and it was towed back to a boat ramp, where it was beaten to death with a metal pole. Glenn Tritton, from the Department of Primary Industries, said the heavy fine was a warning to others.


"This conviction sends a strong message that harming of our threatened species will not be tolerated - everyone needs to know the rules and ignorance is no excuse," he said.

 "Great white sharks are found along the NSW coastline and as apex predators at the top of the food chain, they play an important role in marine ecosystems."

 The Great White Shark is a protected species in Australia and it is illegal to catch, keep, buy, sell, possess or harm them. Source:news.sky.com