Charges to be withdrawn against man who threw catfish onto ice in Stanley Cup Final

SMASHVILLE, Tenn. (WZTV) — Charges are being withdrawn against the Preds fan who threw a catfish onto the ice in Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Final.

The Allegheny County District Attorney's Office said charges against Jacob Waddell don't "rise to the level of criminal charges."

"Having reviewed the affidavit involving Mr. Waddell as well as the television coverage of the incident, District Attorney Zappala has made the determination that the actions of Mr. Waddell do not rise to the level of criminal charges. As such, the three charges filed against Mr. Waddell will be withdrawn in a timely manner." -Allegheny County District Attorney

Waddell was charged with disorderly conduct, possession of an instrument of crime and disrupting a meeting after he threw a catfish onto the ice at PPG Paints Arena in Pittsburgh on Monday.

Waddell called himself "a dumb redneck with a bad idea" in a conversation with Nashville radio station WGFX-FM . He said he bought an "entirely too big" catfish in Tennessee, fileted it and cut half the spine out, and then ran over it with his pickup truck several times to make it easier to pack.

"I tried putting it in my boot, but ... the head was too damn big," he said. "No matter how much I ran over it with the truck, the head was too damn big."

He said he sprayed the fish with cologne and body spray, packed it in a cooler, and sneaked it into the arena by stuffing it down his pants between two layers of regular and compression underwear - having tested the method by wearing the fish at his in-law's home for 20 minutes without them suspecting anything. He took his $350 upper-level seat before descending to the lower level to accomplish the stunt.

A Nashville attorney had previously called the charges "absurd," and multiple outlets offered to pay for Waddell's fines.

PETA said in a statement that it supported the "swift action" to eject Waddell and later charge him.

Game 2 of the Stanley Cup Final is slated for Wednesday at 7 p.m. CST.