ODDLY ENOUGH

ODDLY ENOUGH

Splashing near manatees puts man in hot water

STOCK ISLAND, Fla.

A Florida man who allegedly slapped the water near a group of mating manatees has found himself being slapped with a harassment charge.

A Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission report identifies the culprit as Luis Miguel Perez, a 49-year-old fisherman in the Key West chain.

The Miami Herald reported that Officer Glen Way used his phone to record the fisherman. It’s illegal to poke, prod, pursue or feed manatees in Florida, and that includes giving them fresh water, splashing or making excessive noise.

Mary Stella with the Dolphin Research Center says harassment is defined as “anything that alters the animal’s natural behavior.”

According to the arrest report, there were 16 manatees in the group. The fisherman was charged with a second-degree misdemeanor.

Police: Student attacks jogger, steals underwear

TUSCALOOSA, Ala.

Police say a University of Alabama student pulled down a woman’s pants while she was jogging near the campus and later broke into a nearby home and stole women’s underwear.

Tuscaloosa police Capt. Brad Mason said the woman struggled with the man and was able to escape.

Mason says another woman chased the man from her home after he took underwear. Police soon after arrested 19-year-old John Everett Threadgill.

Mason says Threadgill admitted both crimes during an interview with officers. He was charged with second-degree burglary and first-degree sexual abuse, and jailed with bond set at $45,000.

The university’s associate vice president for communications, Monica Watts, says Threadgill has been banned from the school’s campus.

Gator wrangler puts reptile hit by big rig back in wild

CLEVELAND, Texas

A highway northeast of Houston was temporarily closed when an alligator longer than some compact cars attempted to cross the lanes and was clipped by a passing tractor-trailer.

The southbound lanes of the highway in Cleveland were closed April 30 as authorities worked to remove the gator, which measured at more than 11 feet long.

Chance Ward, who often works with wildlife officials to remove animals that wander into urban settings, helped rope the gator, tie its feet and secure its mouth.

Ward named him George.

It took six men to lift George onto the back of Ward’s flatbed truck. The animal didn’t appear seriously harmed from his brush with the big rig.

Ward later released George into a rural bayou.

Associated Press