Pennsylvania man's big catfish breaks state record

May 10 (UPI) -- A Pennsylvania man is a record holder after reeling in the state's first documented catfish weighing over 50 pounds.

Jeff Bonawitz, 54, of East Lempeter Township, was out fishing from the Susquehanna River's Muddy Creek public access area in York County when he got a bite.

Bonawitz said it took about 25 minutes to reel in his catch: a massive flathead catfish that he immediately suspected of being a new state record.

"I've fished the Susquehanna for years and I've never caught anything quite like it," the fisherman told the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission.

Bonawitz took the fish home and kept it alive in a container over night so it could be officially weighed the next day at Columbia Bait and Tackle in Lancaster County.

The Fish and Boat Commission confirmed the catfish was 50 pounds, 4 ounces -- the first flathead catfish over 50 pounds to be caught in the state.

Bonawitz said he released the fish with help from his nephew, Dylan, 8, after the weigh-in.

"It was such an amazing fish," Bonawitz said. "I thought the best thing to do was put it back so that maybe the next guy could catch it. I have a feeling this record may not last very long."