Video: Octopus steals diver's camera while it is still recording -- check it out --

Of all the places to be mugged, under the sea was probably the least likely. That is, until Victor Huang, a San Francisco man living in New Zealand, faced a thieving octopus while free diving off the coast of Wellington last week.

Mr. Huang, 31, was shooting underwater footage of the octopus when it suddenly reached out with one of its tentacles and grabbed his new $700 camera. Mr. Huang "freaked out" at first until he realized that the creature was only after the device. The octopus managed to wrestle it away from Huang's grip, then sped off, as the camera continued recording.

"He swam very away very quickly like a naughty shoplifter," Mr. Huang told the New Zealand website Stuff. "I honestly believe that it saw the bright blue digital camera and went 'Oh I need that,' you know."

Not ready to part with his new toy, Mr. Huang chased the octopus for five minutes until he caught up with it, and then used his speargun to work the camera free from its mouth. The sea creature let go of the camera, and latched onto Mr. Huang's speargun instead.

After watching the footage taken by the camera, Mr. Huang's parents told him to stop diving, fearing it is too dangerous. Mr. Huang, a nature enthusiast, had set out to record wildlife and scenery around Wellington.

National Post


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