Washington tourist pleads not guilty to federal seal case

A tourist from Washington state pleaded not guilty Wednesday to federal charges after being accused of throwing a rock at an endangered Hawaiian monk seal on Maui earlier this month. Igor Lytvynchuk, 38, appeared in U.S. District Court in Honolulu, where he entered not guilty pleas to two misdemeanor charges of harassing and attempting to harass a protected animal.

The incident occurred on May 5 at a beach in Lahaina. According to a criminal complaint filed by prosecutors, a witness recorded video showing Lytvynchuk throwing a rock described as the size of a coconut directly at a monk seal, narrowly missing its head. When confronted by the witness, Lytvynchuk reportedly stated he did not care and was rich enough to pay any fines. Scientists identified the seal as an adult male known as R404.

Lytvynchuk’s defense attorney, Myles Breiner, said his client was trying to protect sea turtles and did not intend to harm the seal. Breiner explained that Lytvynchuk, a fisherman who had visited Hawaii before, was familiar with sea turtles but not with monk seals. He said his client mistook the seal for an aggressive sea lion. “So his response was not to hurt this monk seal, but to get it...