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More Fish Die From Pond Poisoning

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By STEPHEN THOMPSON | The Tampa Tribune

Published: November 5, 2007

Previous Coverage: Cameras Reel In Fish Kill Suspects | Home Video

PALM HARBOR – The death toll of the fish killed in a koi pond has risen to 39 and is expected to rise further, Carl White, the owner of the pond, said this morning.

Meanwhile, the White family has received an outpouring of support from koi lovers, including the owner of a pond company who has offered to clean the pond for free, White said.

"It's just nice that people out there are feeling our pain," said White's wife, Maria.

Early Sunday morning, authorities say two teenagers dumped liquid and powder dishwashing detergent into White's koi pond, causing about $4,000 in damages. Then it was believed roughly 30 fish were killed; some were koi, some were goldfish and some were sucker fish.

The teens' mischief was captured on video cameras that were installed by the White family after detergent was dumped into the pond twice before, killing the koi. The person who identified the teens from the video is expected to receive a $4,000 reward from White for helping in the case.

White would only describe the helpful witness as a male for fear the person would be retaliated against by the teens.

The teenagers were identified as Sean Michael Smith and Neal Shikarpuri, both 17-year-old Palm Harbor residents. They are charged with felony animal cruelty and felony criminal mischief.

Carl White said there is a pond at Smith's house and that the teen would have known his actions would kill the fish. Smith is the teen captured in the video pouring the detergent into the pond, White said.

"I want him to understand, it was my pets that you killed," White said today.

At the same time, White noted that he, too, was a teenager once and capable of mischief. While he wanted the boys to appreciate the severity of their actions, he also didn't want the incident to come back to haunt them when they are 30 years old and applying for a job somewhere.

White, his wife and his son mourned their dead pets, which had been given simple names such as Phil, Henry, Gloria and Mike. They had moved to the home in the 800 block of Michigan Avenue so they could build the koi pond and the son, now 15, could raise them.

The surveillance cameras captured Smith and Shikarpuri dumping the detergent into the pond at about 1:30 a.m., deputies said, and Smith's dog also was captured on the video.

Deputies later recovered a box and bottle of detergent after opening a manhole cover in front of Smith's home.

"The two teens had apparently gone to walk the dog when the crime was committed," a news release states.

After their arrest, Shikarpuri and Smith were taken to the Pinellas Juvenile Assessment Center.

Reporter Stephen Thompson can be reached at spthompson@tampatrib.com or (727) 451-2336.

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