According to OneWhale.org, Hvaldimir was shot to death. Photo: OneWhale.org
News recently broke that Hvaldimir, the beluga whale that was suspected to have been trained by Russia to be a spy, had died. There was no cause of death at the time of the announcement, but now, it sure looks as though he was shot.
“When I saw his body and the multiple injuries, I immediately knew he had been killed by gunshots,” said Regina Haug, founder of the animal rights group OneWhale, to the. “I even saw a bullet lodged in his body. There is no question that this kind, gentle animal was senselessly murdered.”
According to Haug, photos of Hvaldimir’s wounds were looked at by several veterinarians, biologists, and ballistics experts.
Hvaldimir’s story is an interesting one. It’s very likely that you’ve seen videos of the beluga whale at some point — most likely the one of him returning a lost cell phone or a GoPro. The tame whale was first spotted in 2019. He was wearing a harness with what appeared to be an attachment for a camera, and the harness had the words “Equipment St Petersburg” etched into it. Authorities from Norway theorized that he had escaped from a Russian navy facility north of Murmansk, but Russia neither confirmed or denied it.
For months after he was first spotted near the northern island of Ingøya, he moved through the waters of Hammerfest harbour before swimming along the coast of Norway. He routinely interacted with people, scratching himself on boats and even letting people pet him.
Activists groups were working to have him relocated to safer waters with other beluga pods, and the Norwegian Directorate of Fisheries had granted permits in June to move him to Jarfjord, which is near Kirkenes, Norway. Sadly, though, he died before that could happen. His body was found by a father and son who were fishing on August 31.
The official autopsy is pending, but if early reports of Hvaldimir’s shooting prove true, it’s yet another example of the cruelty to animals some people show.
“The injuries on the whale are alarming and of a nature that cannot rule out a criminal act—it is shocking,” said Siri Martinsen, veterinarian and leader of NOAH, a Norwegian Animal Rights group. “Given the suspicion of a criminal act, it is crucial that the police are involved quickly. Hvaldimir was significant to many, and all facts must be brought to light regarding his death.”
