Florida fisherman catches humongous 12-foot tiger shark

A fisherman from Florida caught a 12-foot tiger shark off the coast of Jacksonville Beach, Fox News reported.

Owen Prior and his friends were fishing last weekend when his friends noticed that something had gotten hooked on his reel.

Prior to narrating the incident, they said that they had been waiting at the beach for around 12 hours before the shark bit his stingray bait. 

He said: "I was actually dead asleep when it happened, and my friend's screaming 'Owen!'." He said it took roughly 25 minutes to reel in the shark.

"Every step closer I took, she got bigger," he said. "You come across like that not that often, but they’re out there," said Prior.

Since tiger sharks are protected in Florida, he had to let her go.

Adding, he said: "We weren’t targeting that shark. It just happened to eat the bait. It’s the same bait for every shark. You never know what it’s going to eat," said Prior.

"Technically, you’re not allowed to take a photo with it. I don’t necessarily regret it, but that experience and photo I’ll remember forever. It’s something I’ll tell my grandchildren one day. I definitely got caught up in the moment a little bit."