A viral beach video out of Lahaina has sparked a wave of anger and a law enforcement probe after a man was filmed hurling a large rock at a Hawaiian monk seal just offshore, the rock splashing down only inches from the animal's head. The people recording the clip confronted him on the sand and later told reporters he brushed them off, allegedly saying, "I don't care, I'm rich." The footage has now drawn widespread outrage and triggered investigations by both police and wildlife officials.
Local coverage of the incident first surfaced, as reported by KHON2, which says Maui police received a report on Tuesday about a man throwing a rock near the Front Street area, prompting dispatchers to alert state wildlife officers. The video was later picked up by The Inertia, which reports that officials indicated federal investigators may review the footage.
According to NOAA Fisheries, the Hawaiian monk seal is one of the world's most endangered seal species, with an estimated total population of roughly 1,600 animals across the archipelago. The agency notes that the seals are protected under both the Endangered Species Act and the Marine Mammal Protection Act, and that recovery and response programs in Hawaiʻi focus on limiting human disturbance and other threats to the species.
Legal consequences
State and federal wildlife enforcers, including the Department of Land and Natural Resources' Division of Conservation and Resources Enforcement (DOCARE) and NOAA's Office of Law Enforcement, routinely investigate viral videos of seal harassment. DOCARE has warned that harassing a monk seal can be charged as a Class C felony under Hawaiʻi law, an offense that can bring fines and jail time, and it urges the public to report suspected violations as quickly as possible.
People who shared or posted the Lahaina clip say they warned the man before he tossed the rock, and they say those firsthand accounts helped kick-start the investigation. The Inertia reports that witnesses claim the man said he visits Maui frequently, and that officials confirmed the footage would be reviewed by federal law enforcement.
How to report
Officials say that if you see a monk seal being harassed or in distress, you should call NOAA's marine wildlife hotline at 1-888-256-9840 or NOAA's Office of Law Enforcement at 1-800-853-1964. The DLNR DOCARE hotline and the DLNRTip app are additional ways to report suspected violations. Authorities emphasize that timely calls, along with photos or video when safely possible, can be critical to investigations into harassment or harm involving endangered marine life.
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