Federal and state wildlife officials are investigating the intentional shooting of a young, female monk seal known as L11 on Molokai which resulted in her death in September.

Officials had earlier announced she was found dead on Sunday, Sept. 19 on the south shore of Molokai. She was one of the pups born on the island last year.

Now officials have confirmed that L11 died of an intentional gunshot wound to the head after a postmortem analysis determined she suffered severe, lethal trauma from a bullet fragment.

She is the isle’s third endangered monk seal intentionally killed on Molokai, considered a Class C felony, which can lead to up to $50,000 in maximum fines and up to 5 years in prison.

“It is past time for anyone who has information on the killing of this seal and the others to step forward,” said DLNR Chair Suzanne Case in a news release. “Earlier this year many people were outraged when a visitor slapped a seal on the back, and we trust the level of indignation we saw associated with that incident will be exceeded by the despicable shooting of seal L11 and the others taken by human hands.”

Seal experts from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration are waiting for test results to determine whether L11 had any diseases, but do not expect them to change the conclusion of the postmortem exam.

NOAA’s Office of Law Enforcement and the state Division of Conservation and Resources Enforcement have actually investigated a total of 10 monk seal deaths on Molokai— nine this year and one last year — but the exact causes of death of many were inconclusive due to decomposition and other circumstances.

A newborn female and male pup, along with a nursing pup were among the deaths. The newborns died of reproductive complications, according to NOAA, while the nursing pup’s death was inconclusive.

But the death of two juvenile males — RJ08 and RK92 — in April were due to blunt force trauma.

NOAA says that due to similarities to other cases, some seal deaths that were deemed inconclusive may have also been intentional killings, and are considered open cases for law enforcement.

“We are grateful for the quick response mounted by community members who are part of Hawaii Marine Animal Response, the State of Hawaii, and others, said NOAA in a web post today. “These individuals ensured that L11’s carcass was collected promptly and preserved in fresh condition, which enhanced the quality of postmortem analyses.”

NOAA continued with, “Our Molokai partners are resilient and dedicated stewards of Hawaiian monk seals and other native marine species. We are committed to continuing our engagement with partners and community members to exchange information and support protection of natural resources and cultural traditions on Molokai.”

Hawaiian monk seals, found only in Hawaii, are a critically endangered species protected by federal and state laws. Only a population of about 1,400 remain in the wild.

Anyone with information about the deaths of the Hawaiian monk seals should contact the NOAA Office of Law Enforcement hotline at 800-853-1964 or DOCARE at 808-643-DLNR (3567) or the free DLNRTip app.

OLE may issue rewards to individuals who provide information leading to an arrest and conviction.