The cassowary killed Marvin Hajos after he fell on his property in Florida.
A large flightless bird that killed its elderly owner is being put up for auction in Florida.
The cassowary – an emu-like bird native to Australia and New Guinea – was one of around 100 exotic pets owned by 75-year-old Marvin Hajos before it killed him earlier this month.
It attacked Hajos after he slipped and fell on his property near Gainesville.
Now the bird will go up for sale at the Gulf Coast Livestock Auction in accordance with his last wishes, according to the Gainesville Sun.
The Auction house’s Facebook page advertises the “absolute auction and complete dispersal of the animal estate of Marvin Hajos” as taking place on April 27.
Two cassowaries are listed among the inventory, alongside a host of other exotic animals including marmosets, lemurs, emus and kookaburras.
The cassowary is described by San Diego Zoo as “the most dangerous bird in the world” because of a four-inch “dagger-like claw” it has on each foot.
“The cassowary can slice open any predator or potential threat with a single swift kick,” reads the description on the zoo’s website.
FRANKFORT, Ky. (AP) — Looking for hard-to-find bottles of Kentucky bourbon to toast the holidays or add to a collection? Get your bids ready as the Bluegrass State launches its first online auction of confiscated alcohol.
Whiskeys up for sale include two bottles of Old Rip Van Winkle, a Blanton’s Single Barrel Gold in box with Japanese markings and a bottle of Four Roses Small Batch Barrel Strength 2011.
The sale is the result of a new Kentucky law, which allows alcohol confiscated from closed criminal investigations by the state's alcoholic beverage control agency to be auctioned.
Online bidding opens Wednesday and closes at midnight on Dec. 11. Proceeds will support programs promoting responsible alcohol use by adults and awareness programs for youths.
“This is a really good auction,” Eric Gregory, president of the Kentucky Distillers’ Association, said by phone Tuesday. “There are some hard-to-find and rare bottles on there.”
No estimate has been given on how much the auction might raise.
“We look forward to seeing the response to this auction and have started planning additional auctions for 2025,” said Allyson Taylor, commissioner of the Kentucky Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control.
The auction features 32 bottles of alcohol and includes a “stock the bar” bundle with bottles of wine, vodka, rum and whiskey, the agency said.
But the stars are the hard-to-find and rare bourbons up for sale.
“It’s not every day you go to a liquor store and find a bottle of Blanton’s Gold," Gregory said. “You never go to a liquor store and find a bottle of Four Roses 2011.”
The lineup includes bottles of E.H. Taylor bourbon, Blanton’s Single Barrel, Eagle Rare 10 yr., Weller Antique 107, Willett Family Estate Single Barrel Rye, Michter’s, an Old Forester gift set and more.
A link to the online auction is available at ABC.ky.gov. Auction items cannot be shipped, so winning bidders must pick up items in Frankfort, the state said.
The auctions will become a “can't miss opportunity” for bourbon connoisseurs, Gregory said.
Until this year's change in the law, Kentucky regulators were required to destroy confiscated alcohol once a case was closed, the agency said.
“We don't like to see good bourbon poured down the drain,” Gregory said.
Kentucky distillers produce 95% of the global bourbon supply, the Kentucky distillers’ group says.
This photo provided by the KentuckyPublic Protection Cabinet shows confiscated alcohol that the state of Kentucky will auction off on Wednesday, Nov. 27, 2024. (KentuckyPublic Protection Cabinet via AP)
