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Alligator Invader Captured, Killed In Country Walk

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SOUTHWEST MIAMI-DADE (CBSMiami) – An alligator, who may have just been looking for love, wound up trapped in the backyard of a Southwest Miami-Dade home early Monday.

Security officers in the community of Country Walk spotted the gator heading into the backyard of a home located at Southwest 144th Street and 149th Terrace.

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Laura Saoud, who lives in the home, said security guards knocked on her door to wake her up and let her know there was an alligator hanging out in her backyard. But she didn't seem to mind the inconvenience.

"It is pretty crazy and exciting. We aren't from here so this is very different for us. We're from Baltimore," she said. "I think it's cool, he's not doing anything but I'm making sure my cat stays inside."

Miami-Dade police called an animal trapper.

The alligator put up a good fight but it was eventually lassoed. The trapper then shot and killed it.

The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission prefers alligators over 4 feet long to be euthanized rather than relocating them because they tend to disrupt the gator population where they are relocated and also tend to try and return to their place of capture.

Spotting alligators out and about in residential areas is not uncommon this time of year.

Alligator mating season is in May and June, according to FWC.

Resident Abdella Saoud said he was glad the trapper got the gator.

"It's pretty scary. We have a child in the house. I usually hear about this stuff in the news when it's happening to other people," said Saoud. "We are pretty close to the canal so now we'll be more cautious especially early in the morning."

"I am kind of surprised. It had to travel through a number of yards to get over here and it doesn't make me feel comfortable," said neighbor Charles Young.

The alligator's exact size has not been released but it appears to be about 6 or 7 feet.

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