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Alligator Found in Bathtub by NYPD Officers Investigating Burglary Report

By Nicholas Rizzi | August 24, 2016 2:15pm

MARINERS HARBOR — A group of NYPD officers investigating a burglary report got a scaly surprise instead.

Officers responding to a call about the potential break-in of a Bush Avenue home Tuesday night didn't find anybody inside except a nearly 3-foot-long alligator in the bathroom, the NYPD said.

After receiving an anonymous 911 call of a burglary in progress at a Bush Avenue home, officers found the alligator in a dry bath tub on the first floor of the home at about 6 p.m., police said.

Emergency Service Unit and officers from the 121st Precinct secured the reptile and took it Animal Care & Control in Manhattan for evaluation, officials said.

Animal Care and Control did not respond to a request for comment on the condition of the alligator.

Alligators are illegal to keep as pets in the city and violations for housing them start at $500, a spokesman for Department of Health said. The alligator would also have to be relocated out of the city, the spokesman added. 

Police said their Animal Cruelty Squad was investigating the incident and there have been no arrests or summons yet.