Vile tourist filmed hurling rock at Hawaiian seal then bragging ‘I’m rich’ offers astonishing excuse for his behavior

A Hawaiian tourist who threw a stone at an endangered monk seal claimed that he did so to protect two turtles he said were nearby.

Igor Lytvynchuk, 38, threw the bullet at the defenseless animal during a trip to Lahaina on May 5.

When confronted about his actions, he told bystanders that he could pay any fines he would be charged as a result.

Lytvynchuk was also beaten ‘pretty badly’ after footage of the incident went viral and some angry locals caught up with him.

The defense lawyer has now claimed that Lytvynchuk was trying to protect other marine life nearby.

‘There were two big turtles in the water. The purpose of throwing the stone was to scare the seal away. Again, he had no idea about the importance of monk seals. “Obviously he didn’t know we had seals in Hawaii,” said his attorney, Myles Breiner. Hawaii News Now.

According to Breiner, Lytvynchuk had previous experience with sea lions while working as a fisherman in Washington and knew how aggressive they could be.

Breiner said Lytvynchuk and his wife watched the turtle and believed it was performing a heroic act.

Video footage from bystanders showed Lytvynchuk throwing a large rock towards the seal, which then retreated from the blow and swam away.

Lytvynchuk has since claimed that he was trying to protect two turtles that he said were near the seal.

“When the monk saw the monk seal pushing the turtles off the rocks, he thought he was doing a good thing by scaring it,” the lawyer said.

‘He was devastated that people thought he wanted to wound the seal.’

Breiner faced further backlash after Lytvynchuk boasted about the incident, saying he was “rich enough to pay the fines.” Breiner said it was just a reaction to the pressure of the moment.

‘He looks like he’s bragging or arrogant. “Okay, and that was probably a reaction to people yelling at him and he was embarrassed, so he doubled over,” Breiner added.

After the incident went viral, a Ukrainian naturalized US citizen was also attacked by another man.

‘He was beaten pretty badly. “There were no broken bones, but yes, there were marks on his back, head and shoulders,” the lawyer said.

Breiner added that they would not press charges.

Lytvynchuk appeared in court in Seattle on Thursday after being charged with violating the Endangered Species Act and the Marine Mammal Protection Act.

Lytvynchuk had previous experience with sea lions and knew how aggressive they could be, according to his attorney, Myles Breiner.

Lytvynchuk appeared in court in Seattle on Thursday after being charged with violating the Endangered Species Act and the Marine Mammal Protection Act. He will appear in federal court again in Honolulu on May 27.

A judge ordered him released on a personal recognizance bond until he appears in court again in Honolulu on May 27, Hawaii News Now reported. He was also asked to surrender his passport.

‘He will pay for this. We can’t go to court and say no, he didn’t do that, but there’s always an explanation,’ Breiner said.

Lytvynchuk is also considering giving back by donating to wildlife conservation efforts.

If convicted, he faces up to a year in prison for each charge as well as a fine of up to $70,000.