Brookline, New Hampshire Fisherman Claims Alligator Snapped At Him

A Brookline fisherman is claiming he caught something unexpected at Melendy Pond on Tuesday night -- a 5-foot alligator.

The man said the alligator lunged at him and tried to bite him before swimming into the pond.

"He was over here on the other side fishing, and he was jumping up and down yelling at me," resident Tom Hodgson said. He was yelling something about catching something out here."

Police said the fisherman said he had it on his line, waiting for officers to arrive, but the line snapped and the animal went back into the pond.

Fish and Game Department officials investigated on Wednesday. They said they didn't have a chance to speak to the fisherman directly, but they got the story through the police department.

"I don't know how close it was to him," Fish and Game Officer Todd Szewczyk said. "A lot of times when we get reports like this, it's a snapping turtle, not an alligator. I don't know how close it was when it was seen. When the police officer arrived from Brookline, the line was broken off, and he didn't get a chance to see it."

Szewczyk checked the pond's shoreline. He said an alligator could not have survived the winter and could only recently have been dumped in the water.

"The water temperatures are 50 degrees, and if it were here, it would be on shore, and we have not been able to find it yet today," Szewczyk said.

Fish and Game officials said they can't say conclusively that there is no alligator, but they couldn't find one or any evidence of one when they searched.

Brookline New Hampshire Alligator
Brookline New Hampshire Alligator

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