A Florida-based shark diver convicted of illegally freeing marine wildlife intended for research off the Sunshine State’s coast was left “speechless” after receiving a surprise pardon from President Trump.
Tanner Mansell, 31, received the shocking news while boarding a plane on May 28, nearly five years after he was first accused of unwittingly cutting a National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration longline and releasing 19 sharks and a giant grouper back into the ocean.
“We were really surprised to get the pardon,” Mansell told Fox News Digital.
“I was getting a call from my lawyer and I answered, and he says, ‘Well, I’ve got good news for you. You just got a full presidential pardon.’ I was speechless. I couldn’t even say thank you. I just soaked it in.”
Mansell and his charter boat captain, John Moore Jr., who also received a pardon, were ordered to fork over more than $3,300 in restitution after they were convicted in 2022 of theft of property within special maritime jurisdiction.
The two men avoided prison time but were ultimately prevented from voting in Florida, owning firearms, and traveling freely outside the country – a condition that had long hindered Mansell’s ability to obtain travel visas to carry out his conservation efforts.
“I’m just so grateful,” he told the outlet.
“I have said thank you every step of the way. Words can’t explain it. I’ve always considered myself a law-abiding citizen, somebody that doesn’t break the law and I respect law enforcement and commercial fishermen.”
In August 2020, the pair of divers came across the longline connected to a buoy about three miles off Jupiter Inlet and, believing it to be illegal, cut it, freeing the apex predators and grouper in the process, according to court documents.
The men reported their actions to state wildlife officials and brought the line back to shore – but were later hit with federal charges and ultimately found guilty by a jury two years later.
“In our mind, the entire time, we thought we were uncovering a crime rather than committing a crime,” Mansell said.
“I just felt like my world came to a stop, my heart sank. We called [law enforcement], we did everything that we could. The judge made a comment, and he commended us for our dedication to [the environment]. He gave out what my lawyer said was probably the lowest sentence ever.”
Mansell’s attorney, Ian Goldstein, told the outlet that the case should never have been filed, framing the maritime incident as an “honest mistake” made by two individuals saving sharks they believed were in danger.
“I can’t think of two individuals more deserving of a Presidential Pardon,” Goldstein said.
With Post wires.
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