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Gator Kills Attempted Auto Theft Suspect

November 15, 2007 |

A man who jumped into a lake apparently to flee police was killed by a nine-foot-long alligator.

Police responded to a call about people breaking into vehicles in the parking lot of the Miccosukee Indian Reservation resort and convention center in Dade County. Miami resident Justo Antonio Padron, 36, was one of two men police found there and chased. Officers arrested Heriberto Rubio, 37, but they say Padron ran from them and jumped into the lake behind the resort.

Divers found and recovered Padron's body under 50 feet of water at the bottom of the lake.

Per Florida law, the alligator that reservation employees had nicknamed Poncho has been destroyed.

Tags: Animals Gone Wild

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Comments (14)

Displaying 1 - 14 of 14
sharris @ 11/16/2007 5:07 AM What a waste of perfectly good gator.
SFCMike @ 11/16/2007 5:58 AM I guess this is a Florida version of "street justice"; hopefully, the family won't try to sue the Reservation, County or State. Then again, if the deceased was an illegal, maybe the sued entity will be forced to pay anyway.
DukeLaw @ 11/16/2007 7:41 AM Gator was being a gator Stay out of water no problem Public service and gets killed for it
328larry @ 11/16/2007 8:43 AM Poncho should have been deputized not destroyed........
med1cop@charter.net @ 11/16/2007 11:08 AM Go Darwin...
bgeeck @ 11/16/2007 12:50 PM Can we get a few Dem thar gators for Phoenix, AZ????
jwpedraza @ 11/16/2007 4:09 PM Poncho may have saved someone's life. No telling if Padron would have taken a hostage or harmed someone else in his attempt to escape.
jwpedraza @ 11/16/2007 4:10 PM Poncho may have saved someone's life. No telling if Padron would have taken a hostage or harmed someone else in his attempt to escape.
jascap @ 11/16/2007 4:13 PM What a shame! A maggot goes into the gator's domain and we kill him for it. Only in America!!
peru4309 @ 11/16/2007 5:22 PM sometimes you're the predator...sometimes you're the prey
stuartc @ 11/16/2007 6:28 PM Well that gives a new meaning to "Go-Gators"!!!!!
mrchiles @ 11/16/2007 11:08 PM Should of cut the gator's tale off and painted him yellow. Tell everyone he is a maligator which is a native dog to only certain parts of Florida.
rmcgee6524 @ 11/18/2007 10:20 AM Well Poncho, this just proves that "NO GOOD DEED GOES UNPUNISHED"!
tcpd0210 @ 11/27/2007 11:49 AM Bet he won't do that again!!!

Displaying 1 - 14 of 14

sharris @ 11/16/2007 5:07 AM

What a waste of perfectly good gator.

SFCMike @ 11/16/2007 5:58 AM

I guess this is a Florida version of "street justice"; hopefully, the family won't try to sue the Reservation, County or State. Then again, if the deceased was an illegal, maybe the sued entity will be forced to pay anyway.

DukeLaw @ 11/16/2007 7:41 AM

Gator was being a gator Stay out of water no problem Public service and gets killed for it

328larry @ 11/16/2007 8:43 AM

Poncho should have been deputized not destroyed........

med1cop@charter.net @ 11/16/2007 11:08 AM

Go Darwin...

bgeeck @ 11/16/2007 12:50 PM

Can we get a few Dem thar gators for Phoenix, AZ????

jwpedraza @ 11/16/2007 4:09 PM

Poncho may have saved someone's life. No telling if Padron would have taken a hostage or harmed someone else in his attempt to escape.

jwpedraza @ 11/16/2007 4:10 PM

Poncho may have saved someone's life. No telling if Padron would have taken a hostage or harmed someone else in his attempt to escape.

jascap @ 11/16/2007 4:13 PM

What a shame! A maggot goes into the gator's domain and we kill him for it. Only in America!!

peru4309 @ 11/16/2007 5:22 PM

sometimes you're the predator...sometimes you're the prey

stuartc @ 11/16/2007 6:28 PM

Well that gives a new meaning to "Go-Gators"!!!!!

mrchiles @ 11/16/2007 11:08 PM

Should of cut the gator's tale off and painted him yellow. Tell everyone he is a maligator which is a native dog to only certain parts of Florida.

rmcgee6524 @ 11/18/2007 10:20 AM

Well Poncho, this just proves that "NO GOOD DEED GOES UNPUNISHED"!

tcpd0210 @ 11/27/2007 11:49 AM

Bet he won't do that again!!!

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