Piranha drama: boy, 8, hooks fearsome exotic fish in Pennsylvania lake

South American fish with razor-toothed jaws was probably released by someone who owned it as a pet, officials say An eight-year-old boy fishing for bass in Pennsylvania was stunned to catch something more associated with the Amazon – and countless horror movies – than the rolling landscape of the eastern US. Seamus Coffey, who was fishing with his father Michael in a lake near Philadelphia, hauled in a large red-bellied piranha, complete with the razor-toothed jaws that the fearsome breed is so famous for. Continue reading...

Guardian staff · Thu, Aug 13, 2026, 6:34 AM
US news | The Guardian

Piranha drama: boy, 8, hooks fearsome exotic fish in Pennsylvania lake

South American fish with razor-toothed jaws was probably released by someone who owned it as a pet, officials say

An eight-year-old boy fishing for bass in Pennsylvania was stunned to catch something more associated with the Amazon – and countless horror movies – than the rolling landscape of the eastern US.

Seamus Coffey, who was fishing with his father Michael in a lake near Philadelphia, hauled in a large red-bellied piranha, complete with the razor-toothed jaws that the fearsome breed is so famous for.

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