Berlin Councillor's Bat Eviction Sparks Online Outrage and Investigation (Full Transcript)

Speaker 1: Video of a city councillor evicting a bat roost in Berlin has gotten the attention of thousands online who claim the move may have broken state or federal rules. Now the Game and Fish investigators are looking into what happened. News 13's Bianca Hoops has the video.

Speaker 2: You know, the video kind of broke my heart a little bit. That reaction? To videos showing what happened in front of the Berlin Chamber of Commerce this weekend. The video showing a man exposing a roost of bats to the broad daylight. What some could say violates state or federal protections. The video was posted to Facebook by Rona Espinoza, the executive director of the Berlin Chamber. Espinoza's post describes the person on the roof as her husband, Berlin City Councillor Rudy Espinoza. The video stirred up negative reactions online, with many saying the bats are a protected species.

Speaker 3: This is the equivalent of someone coming into your bedroom at 3 in the morning, ripping off the covers and shining a flashlight in your eyes and screaming at you to get out.

Speaker 2: NMSU assistant professor Terri Orr is a bat researcher and says anyone trying to get rid of bats should call a professional or even just wait them out.

Speaker 3: They don't want anything to do with people, they're never going to go out of their way to attack you. They're trying to get away, as people probably saw in the video, they just want to get out of there.

Speaker 2: NMSU's 13 contacted Espinoza several times to try to get their side of the story, but never heard back. Meanwhile, New Mexico Game and Fish says it received a lot of calls about the video.

Speaker 3: In New Mexico, we have a lot of agriculture, so they eat all the bugs that would otherwise destroy crops like pecans, chilies, things like that. So they provide those services free of charge.

Speaker 2: Orr says if you dislike bats, consider the impact they contribute in the community.

Speaker 3: We have to think about the health of the whole ecosystem if we want to be a healthy community as well.

Speaker 2: Bianca Hoops, CARE QE News 13.

Speaker 1: Mexico Game and Fish says it's still gathering information about what happened and they're still trying to determine if it was a protected species of bats living behind that sign. They say people should call the department if they're facing any bat issues.