DAYTONA BEACH SHORES, Fla. — A Florida man told police officers he was “teaching it a lesson” when he tried to throw a live alligator he had stolen from a miniature golf course onto the roof of a beachside cocktail lounge, authorities said.
William Hodge, 32, of Homestead, man was arrested early Thursday when Daytona Beach Shores police officers spotted him attempting to throw the gator onto the roof of a cocktail lounge located just off Highway A1A, according to a police report.
The officers then saw him take the alligator by its tail, hit it against the awning of the building, throw it to the ground and stomp on it twice, the report said.
Hodge was taken into custody and charged with possession and injury of an alligator, unarmed burglary of an occupied dwelling, theft and criminal mischief.
He told officers that he had stolen the gator from an enclosure at a nearby miniature golf course, according to police.
An online court docket showed no attorney for the man, who remained in jail Friday morning.
