Published 14:50 IST, January 12th 2021
'Beyond monstrous': Manatee found in Florida with ‘Trump’ etched into its back
Amid the chaos in the US, Florida wildlife officials are now appealing to the public for help after a manatee was found with ‘Trump’ scraped into its back.
Amid the chaos in the United States, Florida wildlife officials are now appealing to the public for help after a manatee was found with ‘Trump’ scraped into its back. The attack on the animal was reported by the Citrus County Chronicle, after which pictures and videos of the large aquatic mammal with the name of the US President etched into its skin went viral. Now the US Fish and Wildlife Service is investigating the “harassment of a manatee” that had been filmed in the Blue Hole spring, on the Homosassa River in the state.
The incident was reported to authorities over the weekend and the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation are now asked anyone with information. A spokesperson for the FWS has said that an investigation is underway, further adding that harassing a manatee is a crime punishable by up to one year in prison and a US$50,000 fine. It is worth noting that Manatees are counted in the list of the Endangered species Act and are usually found in the rest water in the Gulf of Mexico, Amazon River and west coast of Africa.
Capitol siege
Meanwhile, the attack on the mammal has been spotted a few days after Trump supporters took over the Capitol building with the aim to intervene official certification of President-elect Joe Biden’s victory in the US election. The unrest led to an immediate evacuation of Congress members from the House. President Trump, on the other hand, is accused of inciting his supporters, who later breached the security at Capitol Hill. Five people, including a Washington DC police officer, died during the insurrection.
Cracking down on Trump, the Democrat-controlled US Congress introduced formal articles of impeachment against the incumbent President. Charging Trump with "incitement of insurrection", for the US Capitol riots, the House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer sought to vote on the articles by Wednesday. Hoyer had also moved a bill seeking Trump's ouster through the 25th Amendment, however, it was blocked by the House Republicans. Speaker Nancy Pelosi has sought Pence's response within 24 hours, once the bill is re-introduced on the floor.
Trump never conceded defeat to President-elect Joe Biden even after election results clearly showed the latter won more than 300 electoral votes, way above the 270-mark needed to win the presidential polls in the US. Trump kept levelling baseless allegations of "election fraud" and "irregularities", posting conspiracy theories on Twitter. On January 6, he called upon his supporters to gather outside the Capitol Hill building, where the president addressed them and dubbed them "real patriots". After a mob stormed the US Congress building moments after his speech, Trump issued a message asking his supporters to go back home in peace and respect law and order.
Updated 14:48 IST, January 12th 2021