FL Man Who Beat Shark To Death With Hammer Sentenced: Reports

BREVARD COUNTY, FL — A Florida man received no jail time after he was captured on video beating a shark to death with a hammer on a Brevard County beach, according to multiple reports.

Brian Waddill, 34, of Melbourne, was sentenced to 12 months probation and was ordered to pay $336 in fines, according to a WTSP report. A judge also required Waddill to make a $250 donation to Brevard County Zoo as a condition of his probation, reports said.

Waddill was found guilty in July after a restaurant security camera captured him catching a lemon shark while fishing at Bicentennial Beach Park in Indian Harbour Beach in December 2022, WKMG reported.

According to reports, Waddill then beat the shark's head with a hammer multiple times before dragging it back out to sea.

Waddill was charged in February with possession of a prohibited species and failure to release it without unnecessary harm, WESH reported, citing a Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission arrest report.

He pleaded not guilty in May, reports said.