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Ohio police called to remove alligator from basement

Property owners voluntarily surrendered the 25-year-old reptile that was being kept without a permit

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Bethany Bruner
The Columbus Dispatch

MADISON TWP, Ohio — A guest who had overstayed his welcome was removed from a Madison Township home’s basement Thursday by police.

According to a post on the Madison Township Police Department’s Facebook page, they were called to a home in the Groveport area after receiving a report of an alligator penned in the basement.

Officers responded and found an American Alligator in the basement. The Ohio Department of Agriculture was notified and it was determined the owner of the alligator did not have an exotic animal permit.

https://www.facebook.com/MadisonTownshipPD/posts/2596476487291552

The alligator is believed to be about 25 years old. American Alligators are believed to have a lifespan between 30 and 50 years.

The owner voluntarily surrendered the alligator, which will be taken to an animal sanctuary in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina.

It is unknown if the property owner will face any charges for having the alligator without an exotic animal permit, as required by Ohio law.

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