Oak Bluffs Monster Shark Tournament a Platform for Illicit Betting
Gambling contributes to the frenzy of shark killing and shark suffering at the Oak Bluffs Monster Shark Tournament in Massachusetts. An investigation by The Humane Society of the United States documents this potentially illegal betting — which adds a "blood bounty" on animals just struggling to survive.
The Humane Society of the United States sent undercover investigators to the 22nd annual tournament held July 17 to 19 on Martha's Vineyard under sponsorship of Sharks Unlimited. Based on evidence uncovered by HSUS' investigative team, the tournament involves widespread gambling activities, including more than $1 million in total bets and high-stakes wagers called "Calcuttas." A legal analysis by HSUS' outside counsel suggests that these gambling activities are crimes under Massachusetts law.
In releasing videotaped evidence today, The HSUS also announced that it has complained to the Massachusetts Attorney General to investigate and prosecute illegal gambling, which is the "driving force behind these inhumane shark tournaments."
"The addition of high-stakes gambling on top of cash prizes only heightens the incentive to kill large numbers of these ecologically important animals, some of which are threatened with extinction," said John Grandy, senior vice president of wildlife and habitat protection for The HSUS. "Tournaments are bloody, cruel spectacles. Cutting off the spigot of blood money that feeds them will drive these tournaments out of business and save sharks."
The HSUS is represented pro bono in this matter by the Washington, D.C. office of Latham & Watkins.
The HSUS video footage of the shark tournament, including gambling activities, is available at video.hsus.org.
Facts:
- The shark species caught in this tournament have ranges that extend along the East Coast into Canada and as far away as Europe.
- According to a 2008 study by the International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources, thresher, mako and porbeagle sharks, which are frequent targets of tournaments, are threatened with worldwide extinction. Blue sharks have lost up to 70 percent of their worldwide population.
- For more information on shark tournaments, visit humanesociety.org/protectsharks.
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The Humane Society of the United States is the nation's largest animal protection organization — backed by 10.5 million Americans, or one of every 30. For more than a half-century, The HSUS has been fighting for the protection of all animals through advocacy, education, and hands-on programs. Celebrating animals and confronting cruelty — On the web at humanesociety.org.
