- Charges have been dropped against one of the men involved in a shark-dragging video
- Two counts of aggravated cruelty to animals against Spencer Heintz were dropped Tuesday
- Michael Wenzel and Robert Lee Benac III each face the two felony counts, along with a misdemeanor count each of illegal method of taking a shark
- The video went viral last summer after a Miami sport fisherman criticized it on social media
Criminal charges have been dropped for one of three Florida men connected to a video of a shark being dragged behind a speeding boat.
Assistant State Attorney Andrew Hubbard announced in Hillsborough County Circuit Court on Tuesday that two counts of aggravated cruelty to animals against 23-year-old Spencer Heintz would be dropped, according to the The Tampa Bay Times.
Michael Wenzel and Robert Lee Benac III each still face the two felony counts, along with a misdemeanor count each of illegal method of taking a shark.
The three men pleaded not guilty back in January.
Two counts of aggravated cruelty to animals against Spencer Heintz were dropped Tuesday
The video went viral last summer after a Miami sport fisherman criticized it on social media
The horrific shark-dragging took place June 26 in state waters off Egmont Key
Heintz, of Palmetto, along with 28-year-old Benac of Bradenton, had initially been charged with two felony counts of aggravated animal cruelty.
Wenzel and Benac face a misdemeanor count of illegal method of taking a shark. It’s unclear whether those charges will be dropped.
The video went viral last summer after a Miami sport fisherman criticized it on social media.
Investigators with the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission determined the dragging took place June 26 in state waters off Egmont Key.
Michael Wenzel (left) and Robert Lee Benac (right) were the two other men involved in the video
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