While it’s not every day you call the police for an unexpected intruder in your pool — especially one with scales and teeth — Florida residents are more likely than most to encounter these uninvited guests.
Just after 3:00 a.m. on March 29, Tampa Police responded to a reported intruder, an incident local reports say took place at a home in the Arbor Greene community.
Once officials arrived on scene, they were caught by surprise to see the intruder was an alligator that had made the resident’s home its own private swimming pool.
“He’s huge,” one of the officers can be heard saying as the alligator hisses and appears to lunge toward the screen, prompting the officer to step back.
According to local reports, the scaly intruder came in at 9 feet long.
According to the Tampa Police Department, officers, along with the assistance of a nuisance alligator trapper, were able to guide the alligator into the pool so he’d “burn some of that energy off.”
Following his splash in the pool, the trapper was able to secure him.
Video shows the officer and trapper hoisting the gator out of the water.
“One, two, three,” you hear one say as they continue to pull him up and out, eventually getting him into the back of a truck.
“With assistance from a nuisance alligator trapper, the scaly suspect was safely removed, leaving the residents to finally enjoy some well-deserved, gator-free sleep,” the Tampa Police Department noted on Facebook.