West Precinct detectives and the Seattle Animal Shelter are investigating a man for possible animal cruelty charges after he was caught strangling a hawk Monday in a downtown park. The hawk was so seriously injured that it had to be euthanized.

Around 4 pm on October 1st, officers went to Victor Steinbrueck Park, near the Pike Place Market, after receiving a report about a man harming a bird.

At the park, officers found the man, who was holding the bird—a Cooper’s Hawk—in his hands and told him to let it go.

Instead, the suspect—who appeared intoxicated—swore at officers and walked away.

Officers believed the man was suffocating the bird and, with the help of Pike Place Market security, grabbed hold of the suspect’s arms to try to get him to release the hawk.

The man gripped the bird even tighter, but officers were eventually able to convince him to release the hawk.