Laughing gulls find food on the beach at 10th Street on Tuesday afternoon.
It was a spectacle that nobody cared to behold on Friday (July 24) at 39th Street Beach in Ocean City, NJ: An adult beachgoer reportedly caught a gull, snapped its neck and threw its lifeless body into a trash can in full view of a crowd of families enjoying an otherwise beautiful beach day.
An eyewitness account — including a photo of the alleged gull killer — made its rounds through social media over the weekend and included the following description:
"I, as well as a bunch of other people, including children, just witnessed this POS smack a seagull out of the air, breaking its wing and then he snapped its neck. He then proceeded to carry it down the beach to a trash can and threw it away. Cops were called and they did absolutely nothing. Didn't even talk to one witness to get the real story. As they were getting ready to leave, his scumbag friend started swinging his closed umbrella at a bunch of seagulls trying to hit them and then threatened two teenage boys who stood up for the birds. (I have video of that part.) All happened on 39th Street Beach in OCNJ. Share his face everywhere since this will be the only consequence for his actions!"
The post was made to Instagram and to Facebook — with the information generating hundreds of comments as it was shared across different groups and social media timelines.
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The author of the post did not respond to our queries about the incident, and the post appears to have been removed, so OCNJ Daily will not name the author or publish a screenshot showing the alleged perpetrator.
But police continue to investigate, Ocean City Police Capt. Steve Ang said on Tuesday. He said they have the initial police report and the social media posting.
Investigators are working with Bill Hollingsworth of the Humane Society of Ocean City, which is in charge of animal control for the city.
Hollingsworth said animal control and the police department are jointly researching different statutes related to cruelty and are also seeking more first-hand information on what happened on the beach.
Anybody who witnessed the incident is asked to email Hollingsworth at
[email protected].
