Florida woman pulls alligator out of pants during traffic stop
A Florida woman pulled a small alligator out of her pants during a traffic stop Monday morning, authorities said.
The unidentified woman showed an officer the reptile when asked, "Do you have anything else?" There were also 42 striped mud turtles and one softshell turtle in the woman's vehicle when she was pulled over on a highway in Punta Gorda, some 100 miles south of Tampa, according to the Charlotte County Sheriff's Office.
The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission was called to the scene to investigate.
The woman was cited for possession and bag limit violations for all three species, which are native to Florida but are regulated. The reptiles were then seized and released, according to a spokesperson for the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission.
Florida is home to more than a million gators and the reptiles are protected under state law. It is illegal to kill, injure, capture or posses alligators without a permit.
