OCEAN PARK, Wash. — A prominent animal-rights group is offering as much as $5,000 for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the party responsible for an April incident that led to the mortal injury and subsequent euthanization of a mother seal, and the disappearance of her newborn seal pup.

In a press release today, Sophia Charchuck, a spokesperson for People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, wrote, “Officials have yet to make any arrests. That’s why PETA is offering up to $5,000…”

The incident occurred some time on the morning of Sunday,

A mother harbor seal, who had recently given birth, was found dead on the beach north of the Ocean Park beach approach last week, thought to have been a victim of an intentional vehicular killing.
Photo by SUZY WHITTEY / Chinook Observer

April 20, just hours after the mother seal had given birth. Herb McClintock, an Ocean Park retiree and volunteer who searches local beaches for injured wildlife on a near daily basis had placed warning signs around the animals, but it appears that a speeding driver plowed through the area, severing the mother’s tail. By the time McClintock returned around 8:30 that morning, the mother seal was near death, and the baby had vanished. Experts say there were no clues that hinted at the pup’s fate, but surmised that it could have been carried off by an animal, swept out to sea, or abducted by the assailants.

“It’s such an example of cruel callousness – I think a lot of people would be shocked by it,” Kristin Simon, a Senior Cruelty Caseworker with PETA said in a phone interview Thursday afternoon.

According to Simon, PETA has offered rewards for a variety of abuse, neglect and abandonment cases, but they prioritize violent crimes against animals, because studies have indicated that people who abuse one animal are likely to continue hurting animals, and may escalate to violence against human beings.

“People who abuse animals rarely do so only once and almost never stop there,” Simon said. The organization tends to offer rewards in instances where police investigations have stalled out, due to a lack of witnesses.

“We offer rewards generally in cases of unsolved cruelty to animals where police feel the reward could help bring someone to justice. When they don’t have those leads and just don’t have enough information to pursue the case, that’s where we step in,” Simon said. “Whoever can harm an animal, especially in this way has a level of callousness, and is very likely to share it with someone else … I think it’s highly likely someone knows something.”

Simon said the strategy has proven successful, and PETA has paid out “quite a few” rewards, which they fund through donations and the sale of merchandise.

“Our rewards are very successful because it is a lot of money. Who out there couldn’t use $5,000, just for doing the right thing?” Simon said.

This afternoon, NOAA enforcement officer Kevin Mitchell confirmed that his agency is actively investigating the incident, but declined to discuss the details of the investigation.

“There was some evidence, but I can’t discuss it any further. I can’t discus how great – or not great – it was,” Mitchell said.

According to him, acts of apparently intentional cruelty toward marine life are relatively rare on local beaches.

“I’ve been based out of Astoria now for two years and while I’ve worked other incidents that involved prohibited human interaction with marine mammals, this is the first case that I know of like this.”

Mitchell said he welcomed the reward.

“Any time a reward is offered, it can certainly help an investigation. A lot of times, with incidents that NOAA investigates, they occur in very rural areas without a lot of evidence left behind,” Mitchell said, “The best thing we can hope for is witnesses to the event or after the fact coming forward.”

Anyone with information about this case is encouraged to contact the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Office of Law Enforcement toll-free at 1-800-853-1964 .