The state Department of Land and Natural Resources is investigating Instagram postings that appear to show an adult man throwing an object toward a Hawaiian monk seal while it swam off the Lahaina shoreline. A Department of Land and Natural Resources Division of Conservation and Resources Enforcement officer responded after Maui Police Department Dispatch notified the Maui Branch of a case of monk seal harassment.
When the officer arrived on May 5, a 37-year-old man from Seattle, Washington matched the description of the alleged suspect. He was detained, identified and advised of his legal rights, then declined to make a statement and asked for counsel. At this time, he has not been criminally charged, and state investigators said they will turn the case over to NOAA-OLE for further review and possible action under the Marine Mammal Protection Act.
The Lahaina case lands alongside a second set of concerns on Oʻahu, where several members of the public have been reported breaching a temporary fence at Kaimana Beach that marks the resting area for Kaiwi and her pup. Kaiwi, a 15-year-old female monk seal, gave birth on Kaimana Beach on May 3, and the pair were still there on May 4, making the shoreline a crowded focus for both visitors and wildlife managers.
Chief Jason Redulla said the days after a birth are especially sensitive. He said it is a crucial time in the pup’s life and warned that the mother seal may attack if she sees a person or pet as a threat. He pointed to a 2022 encounter at Kaimana Beach in which a swimmer was bitten and suffered lacerations to the face, back and arm. Redulla also said past NOAA fines in monk-seal-related cases have reached several thousand dollars.
Hawaiian monk seals are protected under the federal Endangered Species Act, the Marine Mammal Protection Act and state law, and it is illegal to disturb, harass, feed or otherwise harm one. Redulla urged the public to help by respecting the animals and following viewing guidelines, and the state’s update makes clear that the Lahaina allegation and the Kaimana Beach fence breaches are separate parts of the same enforcement picture. More information is available in the state’s broader update on Hawaiian monk seals at
