Story at a glance
- The 29-year-old woman’s family told WFLA that she would swim in the pond where alligators are known to roam.
- Authorities said the woman appeared to suffer injuries consistent with an alligator attack, but the cause of death is undetermined and the investigation is ongoing.
- Deputies called Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission and trappers to the scene to try to catch the gator.
A Florida woman may have died from an alligator attack in a retention pond near Tampa, Fla., on the Fourth of July holiday, according to authorities.
The Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office on Sunday said a woman’s body was discovered in a pond in Valrico where alligators are known to swim.
Authorities said the woman appeared to suffer injuries consistent with an alligator attack, but the cause of death is undetermined and the investigation is ongoing.
Deputies called Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission and trappers to the scene to try to catch the gator.
“What a tragic ending to the 4th of July holiday for this woman’s family and friends,” Hillsborough County Sheriff Chad Chronister said in a statement.
“I want to thank our local partners for the cooperation with this investigation as we work to learn what led up to her death,” Chronister added.
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The 29-year-old woman’s family told WFLA that she was known to swim in the pond.
“You’re at breeding season and basically the females are laying eggs and nesting. It could definitely be a bad situation for someone in the water,” local trapper Chad Matthews told WFLA.
“There’s a gator in there that’s probably between eight- and nine-foot, at least a couple years ago. It’s been there for years, as far as I know. I do know that people liked to throw marshmallows and feed the gator,” he told the news outlet.
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