The not-guilty plea entered Wednesday by Igor Lytvynchuk, 38, of Covington, Washington, came during a hearing in U.S. District Court in Honolulu. Lytvynchuk faces charges of harassing and attempting to harass a protected animal under federal law, stemming from an incident in which he is accused of throwing a coconut-sized rock at a Hawaiian monk seal, an endangered species.
U.S. Magistrate Judge Rom Trader allowed Lytvynchuk to remain free pending trial but imposed restrictions: he must stay away from beaches and marine wildlife while in the state. “You’re not going to the beach, you understand that,” Trader told him, according to the Associated Press. Lytvynchuk indicated he understood and declined to comment after the hearing.
One of Lytvynchuk’s defense attorneys, Myles Breiner, has said previously that his client was attempting to protect sea turtles from the seal, and that since a video of the incident circulated, Lytvynchuk has been physically assaulted, threatened and had his personal information published online — a practice known as doxing.