FORT MEADE, Fla.—Officials are investigating the death of a man discovered floating in a Florida canal with some of his remains found inside an alligator.
.@PolkCoSheriff says Michael Ford II , 45, of Wauchula drowned in this canal on @MosaicInFlorida property in Fort Meade. His hand and foot were found in an alligator’s body. His friends and family hadn’t heard from him since June 23. @BN9 pic.twitter.com/9iaJvhJXj2
— Stephanie Claytor (@ClaytorReports) June 29, 2019
The Ledger reports that a person found the body floating west of Fort Meade and saw an alligator had parts of it in its mouth. The victim was identified as 45-year-old Michael Ford II.
NEW INFORMATION: Investigators say the man’s hand and foot were found inside the gator’s stomach. The 45-year-old’s family says they hadn’t heard from him since June 23rd. https://t.co/aIsD5eWdOs
— Andrea Lyon ???? (@andrealyonTV) June 29, 2019
The Florida Fish and Wildlife Commission trapped and killed the alligator to perform a necropsy, which revealed that one of Ford’s hands and one of his feet were in the gator’s stomach.
An autopsy revealed Ford had other injuries caused by the gator and apparently drowned, though an official cause of death has yet to be determined.
Alligator Spotted with Knife in Skull
An alligator in Texas was seen swimming with a large knife stuck in its head, and it’s unclear how blade got there.
Erin Weaver, a Houston woman, said she spotted the alligator.
“It looked like a steak knife that was sticking out of his head,” she told KTRK. “I saw him swimming and then I saw him turn, like swimming towards me, and I saw something sticking out of his head,” adding that “I don’t know if it was in his eye, but it looked, if it wasn’t in his eye it was very close to his eye.”
“I feel that somebody did this on purpose,” KTRK quoted her as saying.
It’s unclear if the alleged stabbing was done in self-defense.
“I want to get help for this alligator. I don’t want to see an alligator swimming around with a knife in its head and suffering,” she told the station.
A local official, Chris Bishop, told the station that he is optimistic the gator is not in pain and could live like this for some time.
