Men Charged In Big Pine Key's Alligator's Death

Two men allegedly shot and beat an American alligator to death in the Florida Keys, then served the carcass at a backyard barbecue a few days later, authorities said. They are being charged in the killing of the six-foot female alligator on Big Pine Key. Timothy Goll, 18, of Marathon, and Jordan Milo, 20, also reported as 19, of Big Pine Key, are charged with a felony count of alligator poaching following last month's shooting and beating death of an alligator.

Jim Bell with Key Deer Refuge says the boys killed several birds before shooting the alligator and beating it with a baseball bat.

Meanwhile, authorities are looking for two alleged accomplices. State and federal wildlife investigators say two other people -- both high school students, one a minor -- are also believed to be involved in the March 24 incident. They have not yet been charged.

Bell said that he does not think this incident is related to other crocodile killings in the Florida Keys over the past few months.

"They apparently used a pellet gun to disable it and then used a baseball bat to kill it," said Lt. Steve Acton, a spokesman for the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission.

The alligator had lived in a freshwater pond on Big Pine Key. Some of its body parts were later recovered in area canals, investigators said.

Killing alligators during off-season or without a special license is a third degree felony offense.

Related story, Crocodiles Killed in the Keys

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