VENTURA, Calif. (KCAL/KCBS) – A pregnant sea lion is recovering at a California facility after police say she was beaten with a stick in an attack captured on security cameras. The suspect is now in custody.
A 5-year-old female sea lion is in the care of the Channel Islands Marine and Wildlife Institute after an attack on Ventura Beach. With security cameras throughout the area, a police dispatcher was able to see a man, later identified as 32-year-old Christopher Hurtado, beating the innocent animal about 9:20 a.m. Tuesday.
“They saw a male subject come up and grab a stick off the beach and just began hitting the sea lion. It’s something that is shocking. You don’t expect to see something like that,” said Ventura Police Commander Edward Caliento.
Within minutes of the attack, police responded and caught Hurtado as he tried to leave the area.
“He was discovered to have methamphetamines on him. He was a little confused, probably a little bit under the influence,” Caliento said.
Under the Marine Mammal Protection Act, it is a crime to harass or injure marine animals and birds. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Office of Law Enforcement is working with Ventura Police and California State Parks on this investigation.
Hurtado was booked into jail on felony charges of animal cruelty, possession of a controlled substance and violations of federal laws protecting marine animals.
Recently, sea lions have been washing up on Southern California beaches due to an outbreak in domoic acid poisoning, a naturally occurring toxic algae bloom that causes brain and heart damage when ingested.
Wildlife officials believe the sea lion that was attacked was already suffering from the poisoning at the time, making her weak and defenseless.
“Our guys, they don’t want to see an innocent animal getting hurt. They were there quickly and took appropriate action,” Caliento said.
The sea lion was taken to CIMWI’s rehab facility in Gaviota, where her X-rays did not show any fractures from the attack, according to Ruth Dover, the institute’s vice president.
However, they did reveal she is pregnant. CIMWI is monitoring the pup’s health as domoic acid is passed in utero and can cause prenatal mortality, including stillbirths and premature births.
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