Giovanni Degarimore told The Tribune of San Luis Obispo that he had a change of heart about selling or consuming octopus after learning about their intelligence and an experience he had playing hide-and-seek with one while scuba diving in Fiji.
It was last week that his dock manager called him about a local fisherman selling an octopus caught in a crab trap.
Degarimore couldn't bear the thought of it being cut up. So he bought it, named it Fred and kept it in a tank for a few days before releasing it back into the ocean.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.