A few charter boat fishermen looking to start the year with a good catch got quite the surprise on Wednesday.

They snagged a great white shark off the coast of Broward.

“We didn’t know what it was gonna be, but when we finally laid eyes on it, it was like seeing a unicorn,” says Josh Bieber. “We were just all blown away.”

The group says they felt the boat starting to pull. Soon thereafter, they noticed a 13-foot great white shark that weighed over 1,000 pounds pulling on the other end of the line.

“We were out there for probably a good three hours with not much activity, so we were just kind of floundering around, enjoying the sun,” Bieber adds. “Then, all of a sudden, pretty much the entire boat just started yanking, so we knew we hooked a big one.”

The shark, which was about two miles off the coast, took nearly an hour to reel in. The fishermen took video and pictures and then let the shark go. They also placed a tag on the great white, so that others who catch the shark may will be able to follow its journey.

Another great white shark, named Ironbound, has been spotted off the South Florida coast in recent days.

 

Ironbound, the Great White Shark, Spotted Near South Florida