Fishermen on a public beach on Singer Island in Florida struggled to unhook and release a great hammerhead shark after they caught it and dragged it to shore on February 11.

Leigh Cobb, a shark conservationist who captured this footage from a boat, said the fishermen were “blood baiting” the shark to lure it closer. In the video, Cobb remarks that the fishermen illegally landed the shark. “Illegally landed him, can’t breathe, and there they are on the beach celebrating, with a cop present.” According to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, the great hammerhead is classified as a “group 3” shark, which are “prohibited from harvest in state waters.”

“This is a public beach at 09.30am where children swim and they are attracting sharks closer to the beach by blood baiting the water,” said Cobb in a message to Storyful. “These guys say they catch and release but don’t realise the harm they’re doing putting the animals under stress which in turn fills their body with lactic acid which kills them!” Credit: Leigh Cobb via Storyful