Norwegian police have dismissed claims from local animal rights organizations that the death of a beluga whale suspected of being used as a Russian spy was a deliberate act.
Dubbed “Hvaldimir”—which combines the Norwegian word for whale with part of the first name of Russian President Vladimir Putin—the whale was discovered dead in waters off southwestern Norway on Aug. 31.
Hvaldimir gained worldwide attention after the animal was spotted off Norway’s Arctic coast with a harness attached to its body that appeared to support a mounted camera.
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Upon the discovery of the body, NOAH, Norway’s biggest animal rights nonprofit, and OneWhale, whose mission it was to protect the whale, suspected that Hvaldimir had been illegally shot and filed a complaint.
However in a press release Monday, police, citing Amund Preede Revheim, head of the North Sea and environment section at the joint intelligence and investigation unit in the Sør-West police district, said a report on preliminary investigations indicate “there are no findings from the autopsy that indicate that Hvaldimir has been shot.”
Instead, a stick measuring 35 cm long (14 inches) and approximately 3 cm wide (1.2 inches) was discovered “stuck inside Hvaldimir's mouth.”
“The autopsy showed that his stomach was empty. In addition, most organs had broken down. There is nothing in the investigations that have been carried out to establish that it is human activity that has directly led to Hvaldimir's death,” the release continued, citing Preede Revheim.
Police described visible wounds on the body as “completely superficial” and the injuries “have not affected vital organs or are of a fatal nature. The preliminary autopsy report does not conclude what caused these injuries.”
“Among other things, an X-ray was taken of the front part of the more than four-metre-long (13-feet) whale, where the wounds are. Here, nothing has been found to indicate that these injuries stem from gunshots. No projectile has been found either,” Revheim said.
“The autopsies have gone all over Hvaldimir on the outside, and no signs of further external damage have been found.”
Police said that since the findings, they will no longer actively investigate the case. The final autopsy report will be available within two weeks.
Activists, however, are not convinced. In a Facebook post Monday, OneWhale announced a $5,000 reward for more information surrounding the death of Hvaldimir.
“Today it was announced that local police in Norway will not be conducting an investigation at this time,” a statement read.
“Many organizations who claimed he was ‘safe with human monitors’ would like the ‘inconclusive’ preliminary report on Hvaldimir’s death to be the end of it. But despite the barrage of on-line abuse, we aren’t hasty to sweep his death under the rug. We look forward the the final vet report, which for now leaves us more questions than answers.”
NOAH, meanwhile, pointed again to the marks on Hvaldimir's body, claiming in a statement that police “still cannot account for what the bullet-like marks are on his body.” It added, “NOAH is now demanding a thorough explanation on what actually happened to Hvaldimir,” claiming “we believe it is too early to dismiss the investigation into a young, healthy whale dying in a healthy condition with unexplained injuries. The police’s current explanation of the finding of a stick in Hvaldimir's mouth raises more questions than answers, and NOAH wants to ensure that all the facts are revealed. It is our duty to ensure full transparency about what has happened to Hvalidmir!”
