Large lobsters released in Connecticut

NOANK, Conn., July 26 (UPI) -- A 17-pound lobster and a 15-pound lobster, which were bound for dinners at two Connecticut restaurants, have been released back into the water.

Gov. Dannel Malloy took time out of his tour of southeastern Connecticut Wednesday to pardon a 15-pound lobster at Abbott's Lobster in the Rough in Noank and personally drop it into the Mystic River, The Day, New London, Conn., reported Thursday.

Meanwhile, Don MacKenzie, vice president of Boats Inc. in Niantic, said he stepped in with an undisclosed amount of money to save 17-pound lobster "Lucky Larry" from becoming someone's dinner at The Dock Restaurant in Waterford.

"Let's just say that it's the most expensive lobster I never ate," MacKenzie said of the lobster, estimated to be 80 to 100 years old.

Steve Wilson, Boats Inc. head rigger, said the exact location of Larry's release is being kept a secret to protect the crustacean from being recaptured.