What to Know
- Savion Mendez of East Orange, and the alleged finder Angel Rosario of Asbury Park, were identified as the main persons of interest, the Monmouth County SPCA said.
- Although the Monmouth County SPCA says that "at no point was the alligator left in a dangerous or life-threatening situation," both Mendez, Rosario, and even Rosario's parents will face charges in connection to the young alligators abandonment.
- The reptile has since been taken to the Cape May Zoo.
The owner of a young alligator discovered earlier this week inside a plastic container in an empty New Jersey lot was located and is now facing charges, according to officials, after authorities found out that the "good Samaritans" who called in the discovery were actually behind the reptile's abandonment.
Savion Mendez of East Orange, and the alleged finder Angel Rosario of Asbury Park, were identified as the main persons of interest, the Monmouth County SPCA said.
Mendez allegedly purchased the juvenile gator at a reptile expo in Pennsylvania and was keeping him in a 150-gallon tank at his residence in East Orange. However, according to MCSPCA Humane Law Enforcement, when Mendez was evicted from his East Orange residence, he moved with the alligator to the Twinbrook Apartment Complex in Ocean Township, where he and his new roommates are also now facing eviction.
Rosario, an acquaintance of Mendez, according to officials, allegedly offered to take the alligator. However, when Rosario’s parents refused to allow him to keep the 3-foot-long reptile, they collectively staged the abandonment and called the Neptune Township Police Department posing as good Samaritans, officials said.
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Although the Monmouth County SPCA says that "at no point was the alligator left in a dangerous or life-threatening situation," both Mendez and Rosario, and even Rosario's parents will face charges in connection to the young alligator's abandonment.
News
The SPCA said that Mendez will have regulatory charges filed by the NJ Department of Fish & Wildlife for the violation of keeping a prohibited and dangerous exotic species. Meanwhile, Rosario and his parents are facing charges of falsifying a police report.
Attorney information for the accused was not known immediately.
The reptile has been taken to the Cape May Zoo.
“It is illegal for New Jersey residents to keep alligators or caimans, which are considered potentially dangerous exotic species," Executive Director of the MCSPCA Ross Licitra said. "Not only is it a danger to the public, but these animals, when kept in captivity, need very specific care that only professionals can provide.”
