FGCU police wrangle 6-foot gator on busy campus boardwalk

A 6-foot alligator made an unexpected appearance at Florida Gulf Coast University, causing a commotion on a busy boardwalk.

Four campus police officers were needed to wrangle the gator as students watched in surprise.

Lt. Terry Targia of the FGCU police department remarked, “This is UPD one, alligator zero.”

The boardwalk is used daily by hundreds of students traveling between South Village and the main campus.

“It’s quite a busy boardwalk, so as the students were passing, we couldn’t just let an alligator lay there, because we don’t want anybody getting attacked,” said Targia.

FGCU student Payton Murphy shared her thoughts upon seeing the video.

“When I saw the video, I was like ‘what if I was the one walking to class… like do I just turn around? Like do I walk past it? Like what would I do?'”

Isabelle Valencia, another student, narrowly missed the encounter on her way back from class.

“I’m from Minnesota, so I don’t know how often this happens,” said Valencia.

Valencia captured the incident on her phone, expressing concern when one officer fell.

“When the cop fell, I was kind of scared, because I was like, I don’t know if he’s gonna get bit or something,” she said.

Lt. Anthony Garcia, who fell while attempting to trap the alligator, recounted his experience.

“When it felt that I pulled it… he almost did that death roll that alligators do towards me. And honestly, I don’t even know how I fell. And as you saw it, I fell. I got up quick, because I’m like, ‘I think it’s still coming towards me,'” said Garcia.

Students were shocked to see the fall captured on video, with reactions ranging from “oh wow!” to “that escalated so fast!”

Despite the dramatic scene, Garcia confirmed a safe outcome for all involved.

“Luckily, no one got hurt. I’m okay. The Gator is fine, and it turned out to be good for everyone,” he said.