Was a Bull Shark really spotted on Ohio River? Fact Check

Rumours are circulating online that claim a 12 foot Bull Shark was discovered on the Ohio river. The rumours link back to a story that claims the shark swam away unharmed after being reeled in by a fishing boat.

The majority of the links seem to link back to a small story on the website react365.com. That story reads as follows –

Residents of Shadyside were shocked when a fishing boat reeled in a 12ft bull shark. The line broke and the shark swam away unharmed. Sharks have been spotted in the Mississippi but never in the Ohio. Experts are still unsure how this shark made it through the dams. They warn the public to be careful, "there may be more".

There appears to be little truth to the story. The website that published the story is a prank website that invites visitors to write their own stories and headlines that subsequently appear on the site, where the pranksters can then share links to their works of fiction on social media.

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Other “stories” featured on the site include the claim that rapper Tupac has “come out of hiding” to release a new song.

There has been no mainstream media reports of such a story occurring, which inevitably there would be. As such, the story can be easily dismissed as fake.

Also in 2015 another fake story spread online that claimed a photo of a 2.9 metre bull shark was caught on the Ohio River but the accompanying photograph was actually taken in Australia.

The Ohio River has had a brief history with sharks, however. In 2010 a 2-foot dead shark was found washed up on a boat ramp.