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Lawyer disputes Bobo report

By Akilah Johnson
Staff Writer
Posted July 31 2004

West Palm Beach · Disputing the findings in the state's investigation into the shooting death of a 600-pound tiger, Steve Sipek's attorney said Friday that his client deserves an apology and that the criminal investigation into Bobo's escape should be stopped.

Cory Strolla said the report is flawed and contradicts previous statements that two officers witnessed Bobo lunge at Florida Fish & Wildlife Conservation Commission Officer Jesse C. Lee. He said Lee and Officer Scott Van Buren, who was there as back up, gave conflicting statements about hearing the cat roar and seeing Bobo lunge.

That's what upset us when FWC said both officers saw the tiger turn and lunge. When in the report, Van Buren said he never saw Bobo," Strolla said in his office decorated in a safari motif. "If Bobo was out in plain view and did a 180, how does officer Van Buren not see Bobo spin around and lunge?"

In the report, Van Buren told investigators that he could not see the cat when he and Lee first approached. It was not until Lee told him it was moving and he began to step forward, that Bobo came into view, the report said. He said he never heard the tiger growl, but Lee told investigators "the tiger gave a loud roar."

"If a 600-pound male tiger lets out a loud growl you're going to hear that from about 100 yards away," Strolla said.

The cat made international headlines when he was shot and killed by Lee after a 26-hour search. The original plan was to use scouts to find Bobo, then have members of a tranquilizer team dart the tiger with a sedative. But it took more than 20 minutes for the tranquilizer team to arrive. As Lee and Van Buren waited, the tiger got agitated, hissed at Lee with its ears back and teeth showing, then lunged at the officer, the report said. That's when Lee shot him, the report said.

State wildlife officials, who have repeatedly expressed remorse over the tiger's death, have defended themselves against an onslaught of criticism ever since the July 13 shooting. The wildlife commission stands by the investigation that cleared Lee of wrongdoing. According to the report, Lee feared for his life when he fired his high-powered rifle.

Commission spokesman Jorge Pino, addressing the issue of contradictions, said: "When those statements, if there are some contradictions, were made they were very preliminary statements."

Strolla said he thinks it's impossible for the commission to have completed an unbiased investigation and thinks the Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office or the Florida Department of Law Enforcement should have investigated. If that had happened, he said, "We wouldn't be so upset."

The criminal investigation against Sipek is a way to divert attention from the agency, Strolla said.

"Regardless of what the outcome would have turned out to be ... we still would have mounted a criminal investigation to find out why the tiger escaped," Pino said.