See you later alligator!
A feisty, six-foot nuisance alligator was removed from the home of a 104-year-old Jacksonville woman near Atlantic Boulevard and Art Museum Drive and placed under “arrest,” according to the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office.
The light-hearted encounter was captured on video.
The alligator was reportedly captured by licensed trapper Mike Dragich, who handed the small-time offender to a Jacksonville sheriff’s officer. But the little reptile didn’t go down without a fight and we can see him struggling, hissing and trying to roll into the officer’s arms. “We can’t handcuff him,” the officer says.
The video then shows the alligator being placed under “arrest” on the tailgate of a truck while its mouth and hind legs are wrapped in electrical tape.
“You’re under arrest,” the officer told the alligator. ‘You have to leave the grandmothers alone. I’ll take you to the center. Let’s go.’
Do not worry. The feisty little alligator has been relocated and is alive and well, according to the sheriff’s office.
Alligators in Florida
Alligators are found in all 67 Florida counties, according to Florida Fish and Wildlife and, along with the American crocodile, are one of two crocodilians native to Florida.
FWC says female alligators rarely grow longer than 10 feet, but males can grow much larger. The state record for height in Florida is a 14-foot, 3 1/2-inch male from Lake Washington in Brevard County. The Florida record for weight is a 1,043-pound, 13-foot-10-1/2-inch male from Orange Lake in Alachua County.
Alligator safety tips
If you are concerned about an alligator, call FWC’s Nuisance Alligator Hotline at 855-FWC-Gator (866-392-4286) and follow these rules for living safely with alligators:
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Never feed an alligator
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Keep pets away from the water’s edge
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Swim during the day and only in designated areas
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Keep your distance if you see an alligator
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This article originally appeared in the Florida Times-Union: Watch as a 6-foot-long alligator is ‘arrested’ in the home of a 104-year-old Florida woman
