Boat off Mass. hauls in 1,260-pound blue marlin believed to be East Coast's largest

A Massachusetts charter captain and his client hauled in what they believe is the largest Atlantic blue marlin ever caught off the U.S. East Coast. Damon Sacco, skipper of the Castafari, and Walter Chapman landed the billfish on Wednesday after a roughly three-hour fight on rod and reel in waters about 100 miles off Cape Cod. The fish measured more than 11 feet (335 cm) and weighed 1,260 pounds (571.5 kg) when brought ashore in Falmouth, Massachusetts—142 pounds (64.4 kg) short of the Atlantic blue marlin world record set off Brazil in 1992. The marlin’s head was sent to the University of Maine lab to estimate its age.