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WATCH: 12-year-old boy from Massachusetts catches great white shark off Florida coast

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. — A 12-year-old boy from Massachusetts caught a great white shark on Tuesday while deep-sea fishing with his family off the coast of Fort Lauderdale.

Campbell Keenan, of Southampton, MA, was with Fort Lauderdale Fishing Charters when he caught the 11-foot female great white weighing about 500 pounds.

“I’ve never actually seen one in person before, so it was shocking to see how big a shark looked up close,” Campbell said.

Campbell says it took about 45 minutes to reel the great white in and it took all his might to not let go of the rod.

“The biggest fish that I ever caught before this was a 25-inch striper,” Campbell said.

Cambell’s mother, Colleen Keenan, said the experience was scary at first.

“We had to hold onto him. We had to make sure he wasn’t going to go off the boat. He had to hold on to the reel, and he was strapped in and not really,” Campbell’s mother said.

The fishermen on board tagged the great white, which Campbell got to name, and released it back into the ocean.

This is a developing story. Check back for updates as more information becomes available.

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