Officials said remains belonging to a Florida man were discovered in an alligator Thursday after the animal was spotted near the man’s partially-eaten body.
According to WFLA, Michael Ford II, 45, was found in a canal in Polk County. Fish and Wildlife officials reportedly trapped and killed the alligator—which was approximately 449 pounds and 11 feet, 10 inches long—and took it to the Medical Examiner’s Office along with Ford’s body.
An autopsy stated that Ford suffered lacerations and injuries caused by the alligator and listed his apparent cause of death as drowning. A final cause and manner of death are pending toxicology results, the news station reported.
The Polk County Sheriff’s Office said the alligator had “disengaged” from Ford’s body prior to their arrival. WFLA reported that a necropsy revealed Ford’s hand and foot inside of the gator’s stomach.
“When he was found by a Mosaic employee, a large alligator had a part of Ford’s body in his mouth,” police spokesperson Cassie Horstman explained in a statement acquired by Patch.
NBC News reported that detectives seized a truck from the scene which reportedly belongs to a friend who agreed to sell it to Ford. Ford nor the friend have been heard from since June 23, according to reports.
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[Featured image: Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission]
