BROWNVILLE-On Saturday, June 6th, Richard Hagen hooked into a Flathead Catfish in the Missouri River near Brownville that would crush the state record. 

  Richard Hagen

Hagen from Swanton, Nebraska caught the monster Saturday night using a rod and reel.  The new state record Flathead Catfish came in officially weighing 89lbs, is 53.5in long, and 37.5in girth, shattering the previous state record of 80lbs. 

A tweet from Nebraska Game and Parks reads "Holy Cow! Looks like our rod & reel state record flathead catfish will now stand at 89 pounds!"  and they estimate the fish to be around 100 years old. 

  Richard Hagen

The giant cat was originally going to be taken to the aquariums near Louisville, NE.  However, they did not have a tank big enough to hold the fish, so it was released back into the Missouri River for future anglers to test their luck at. 

Hagen's niece, Dara Leigh tells News Channel Nebraska that this record has been a long time coming for Hagen. "Years of experience and lots of patience..he’s a man well deserving of that catch!!"