An attorney for a Florida man who recently purchased a dolphin hunting license said he was unable to prove his client’s hunting license is valid because the agency didn’t properly check his identity.
In a letter to Florida Department of Fish and Wildlife officials on Monday, attorney David Hines said the department’s records on a man who purchased the hunting license he had registered under a false name were “unverifiable and lacking.”
The agency’s website lists Hines as the man’s attorney, but he didn’t provide his name or address.
Hines sent the letter in response to a complaint filed by attorney Michael Cone, who said the agency had failed to properly check the man, identified in court documents as John Doe, to determine his identity and that the agency failed to provide him with copies of his identification.
The agency did not respond to an email seeking comment.
Hates license, the letter said, was not valid.
Cone has filed two similar complaints with the state agency in recent months alleging that officials at the agency were failing to adequately verify the man was not a member of the public and did not belong to a particular social group.
The Department of State Fish and Game has not publicly responded to the complaints.
The department’s website doesn’t provide details on who can purchase a hunting license.
In an emailed statement, the department said that the office of the secretary of state’s office reviews the documents filed by registered owners, “including all relevant documentation, to verify the identity and status of the person and to make sure all information on the license is accurate.”
The department does not provide information on how often licenses are checked.
In the letter, Hines wrote that the department had been working with Hines to obtain the man to verify his identity before the license was issued, but that the man did not provide any information on when or where he would receive the license.
The letter said the Department of Public Safety’s “office of investigations and criminal investigations is working to determine if any violations have occurred.”
The letter also said the man had not provided the required documents to the department, but the department did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The man told The Miami Herald that he purchased the fishing license through a Florida online vendor on March 2, according to the affidavit.
The affidavit said the online vendor had been unable to verify a man’s identity.
It didn’t say when the man purchased the license, how much he paid, or how many licenses he purchased.
