VietNamNet Bridge – A Binh Dinh fisherman captured a 100kg shark believed to be the culprit in attacks on swimmers at Quy Nhon beach earlier this year.

Shark hunt yet to locate real culprit

Caught shark not attack sea bathers in Quy Nhon

Vietnamese province puts bounty on “shark” after 10 recent attacks

Vietnamese fisherman hunting “ten million dong shark”

One-tonne shark netted near shark attack beach

On April 13, fisherman Do Van Cong, 53, dropped his net near the site of the January 2010 shark attacks. He caught a shark and brought the fish to shore with assistance from two other fishermen. He claims the fish was still alive when he saw it and this is the first time he ever caught a shark in his net.

Bureau for Aquatic Resource Development and Protection officials went to examine and measure the shark, which was 1.6m long, 1m of belly perimeter with jaws at 2.1cm wide and weighing 100kg.

Photos of the shark were sent to Nha Trang Oceanography Institute, where scientists discovered that this species lives in the bottom of warm seas and sometimes swim near shore to seek cooking or to reproduce. This species of shark is also allowed to be caught.

Bureau Chief Nguyen Huu Hao commented that the jaws of this shark fit the bites left on victims and is the culprit in recent attacks. He added that other sharks are still out there, so the sentry-boxes should be set up early to protect swimmers.

Mang Duc Hanh, a lecturer of Quy Nhon University and a shark attack victim, testified that this shark is similar to the one that attacked him on January 9.

Binh Dinh Province People’s Committee presented the fisherman with a 5 million dong reward (over $200). Residents complained that the announced award was 10 million dong to anybody who captured the guilty shark.

Cong sold the shark for 3 million dong and, together with his reward money, bought a new motorbike.

In early January, around ten swimmers were bitten by a fish near Quy Nhon. Scientific experts from Nha Trang Oceanography Institute identified the culprit as a shark, but they couldn’t define the specific species.

PV