PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. – Students walked into a gruesome scene Thursday morning at a Florida high school.
A dead shark was hanging from the rafters above a staircase at Ponte Vedra High School, WJXT reported.
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St. Johns County Sheriff’s Office was given surveillance video from the school district showing the shark being hung up but said it will not be released, citing an ongoing investigation.
Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission is also investigating the incident.
The shark was cut down and removed Thursday.
According to WJXT, the shark is the school’s mascot and students at the high school told reporters that it was a senior prank.
The St.John’s County School District confirms a shark was found hanging above a staircase at Ponte Vedra High School this morning. They don’t know who put it there. It was cut down and removed. @wjxt4 viewers sent us pics. A student I spoke with says it was a senior prank. #PVHS pic.twitter.com/prXhToXdtV
— Marilyn Parker (@MarilynParkerTV) May 5, 2022
“It’s kind of gruesome. I’ll be honest. That’s a pretty big shark too,” Ponte Vedra High student Julian Chandlee told WJXT. “It’s in the main courtyard. There are some steps that go up to the main hall, and that’s right over the steps, so it’s in a pretty major spot.”
Jim Gelsleichter, Ph.D., associate professor of biology and director of the Coastal and Marine Biology Flagship Program at the University of North Florida told WJXT he thinks the shark could likely be a sandbar shark, which is prohibited from recreational and commercial harvest in Florida state waters.