Illegal alligator hunts included hacking gator with machete, Florida officials say

Multiple illegal alligator hunts have resulted in felony poaching charges against four men, including one instance of an alligator being hacked to death with a machete, according to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission.

The alligators were killed Jan. 31, Feb. 14 and April 28, on property along State Road 52 near Land O’ Lakes, affidavits report.

Two suspects are accused of killing the alligators, while two others processed the meat for consumption, state officials say.

The investigation began after a March 9 tip about “an individual unlawfully taking various species,” FWC officials told McClatchy News.

“Officers met with two suspects and discovered evidence of illegal possession of an alligator on one suspect’s cell phone and the other confessed to the illegal take of an alligator using a rifle,” FWC officials said.

“After further investigation, officers interviewed a third suspect who admitted he processed the meat from illegally taken alligators. Alligator meat and a rifle were seized as evidence.”

Evidence discovered in April led to a fourth arrest involving a meat processor, officials said.

FWC has not said how the illegal hunts are connected, but investigators are seeking additional tips involving “illegal wildlife activities” at the 6,200-plus acre Angeline development under construction near Land O’ Lakes. The project is about 20 miles north of Tampa.

The suspects are from Florida, range in age from 35 to 61, and each faces a charge of illegally taking of an alligator, a third-degree felony that can result in up to five years in prison.

Two of the reptiles were shot and one was killed with a machete in Five Mile Creek, which crosses the Angeline development, maps show.

Florida’s alligator hunting season begins Aug. 15 and ends Nov. 1 and allows for only 7,000 permits to be issued.

It is illegal to kill alligators out of season, unless they have been officially deemed a threat to the public by FWC. In such cases, the state will contract a licensed trapper to trap and euthanize the alligator.

This story was originally published May 8, 2023 at 9:00 AM with the headline "Illegal alligator hunts included hacking gator with machete, Florida officials say."