New body cam footage has shown how police dealt with a 14ft alligator that was spotted with a woman’s body in its mouth
A a 41-year-old mother encountered an alligator and was killed after it attacked her and pulled her into a canal.
New bodycam footage has shown the moment authorities dealt with an alligator that was believed to have attacked a woman.
Sabrina Peckham, 41, was killed last September and was dragged into a canal along a residential street in Largo, a small community four miles south of Clearwater.
The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission recently provided the new body cam footage that reiterated the size of the animal and the number of people involved to deal with the situation.
A report by the FWC also gave insight into the possible way that Peckham was set upon.
Sabrina Peckham, 41, was killed last September and was dragged into a canal along a residential street in Largo.(Fox13)
According to the report, Peckham is believed to have been homeless at the time and was staying at a campsite only a few yards from the canal where the gator was found.
The FWC was initially called to the canal after a man walking by the area spotted a gator with what appeared to be a human body in its mouth.
At the time he spoke to Fox 13 and said: “I noticed it had a body in its mouth, like a lower torso, so once I saw that, I ran straight to the fire department and got them, they confirmed it was a body.”
The video shows that the animal was a whopping 13 feet and 9.5 inches long and was shot fatally shot with a rifle when it was confronted by authorities.
It is not clear whether the animal was provoked into attacking Peckham or whether it surprised her.
The FWC confirmed that on Peckham’s body there were no signs that she had been in the water before the reptile attacked her.
A park ranger did state that he believes he had spotted her walking in the area a week before the attack, however.
The canal, known as McKay Creek, is popularly used by alligators to travel between Ridgecrest Lake and Taylor Lake, the report added.
Since the attack Pinellas County has put up fencing and new signs to keep people away from the canal.
The FWC was initially called to the canal after a man walking by the area spotted a gator with what appeared to be a body in its mouth. (Fox 13)
Peckham’s daughter, Breanna Dorris, had a vigil for her mother back in September and also spoke to news outlets about the difficulty of the situation.
“It’s surreal, but I’m super grateful her community can pull together in time like this. It shows we have an amazing support team behind us in times of tragedy,” she said.
Featured Image Credit: Fox 13/ Fox13 WTVT
