Small shark reeled in at Jones Beach, draws crowd

A man fishing at Jones Beach reeled in an unusual catch Wednesday afternoon: a small shark.

The catch at about 2:45 p.m. drew a crowd of onlookers at Field 6, including Tyrek English, 23, of Amityville, who shot several videos on his cellphone.

The videos posted on Twitter show the sleek, gray shark squirming and flopping around on the sand. The unidentified fisherman then grabs the shark just above the tail and tosses it back into the surf. The shark can be seen swimming off, disappearing into a wave.

"I didn't know why they didn't call us out of the water. He threw it back in and everyone stayed in the water," English said Wednesday night.

He said he showed the videos to a lifeguard, who assured him that he'd ask everyone to get out of the water if the shark returned.

"It was the first time I've ever seen a shark up close in my life," English said. "My mom was concerned because we're supposed to bring my nieces out to the beach tomorrow and a shark like that -- it's not a huge shark, but it could take my niece's leg off."