13-Year-Old Catches Monster Catfish Weighing 55 Pounds in New Mexico's Elephant Butte

A 13-year-old boy from New Mexico made a record-breaking catch when he caught a 55-pound catfish while out fishing with his father, according to a report.

Alonso Ordaz caught the large fish while fishing on a lake in Elephant Butte, KOAT 7 reported

Ordaz’s father told KOAT that after his son caught the fish, they weighed it on the boat and then released it back into the water. 

The current state record for a blue catfish is 54.25 pounds, and if the weight of Ordaz’s fish weight was accurate, the catfish could have set a new record, the New Mexico Game and Fish Department told Fox 13 News. 

However, since the fish was not weighed on the official state scale, the young Ordaz’s fish became ineligible for the state record.

Even so, the teen’s catch caught the attention of New Mexico Rep. Rebecca Dow, who posted it on her March 2 New Mexico fishing report that listed Ordaz’s fish as one of the catches of the week.

“Alonso Ordaz, age 13, caught and released a 55-pound blue catfish using cut bait shad on a Santee Cooper Rig with a Muddy River Catfishing Demon Dragon Feb. 22,” Dow said.

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