Authorities apprehended a large criminal with “scaly intentions” after he was seen lingering “near the double yellow line” on a North Carolina road.
In Jacksonville, about 120 miles south of Raleigh, “Pepe the Gator,” who weighed nearly 400 pounds and was 10 feet long, was seen idly wandering off the pavement. According to witnesses, “he was just chilling and snapping (and) clearly ignoring the ‘no loitering or lounging on roadways’ sign,” the Onslow County Sheriff’s Office wrote in a Facebook post.
The prehistoric individual “has been cited for Suspicion of Being a Dinosaur without Proper Papers, Public Loitering with Intent to Sunbathe, and Obstructing Traffic,” according to the hero’s office.
A spokesman for the sheriff’s office, Trevor Dunnell, told USA TODAY that Pepe was eventually apprehended, transported to a boat ramp on Camp Geiger, a few miles away, and released back into the wild the same day.
Except for Pepe’s pride when he “refused to be cuffed,” no injuries were reported, according to officials.
According to the North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission, American alligators are native to North Carolina and can be found living in ponds, bay lakes, rivers, creeks, marshes, and swamps. According to the wildlife commission, the state represents the “northern extent of the alligator’s range and they generally become less common as you move from south to north along the NC coast.”
According to the Wildlife Commission, adult male alligators can weigh up to 500 pounds and grow up to 13 feet in length, while females typically reach less than 9 feet and weigh up to 200 pounds. According to the commission, these untamed creatures are naturally timid and reticent.
The North Carolina Wildlife Federation states that it is unlawful in North Carolina to feed, touch, injure, harass, or poach alligators. The government advises keeping a safe distance of at least fifty feet in case of an encounter and being alert in places where alligators have been observed.
