Construction workers found the dismembered body of a Davie woman on Wednesday who was attacked by an alligator after she went out for a nightly jog, authorities say.The body of Yovy Suarez Jimenez, 28, was found floating in a canal between Markham County Park and State Road 84 in Sunrise, police Lt. Robert Voss said.
"We have witnesses and we have physical evidence to support our theory that the young lady was dragged into the water and attacked," said Officer Jorge Pino, spokesman for the Florida Fish & Wildlife Conservation Commission. "But, that's a theory. We may never know. The possibility also exists that she might have fallen in."
Unidentified witnesses told investigators that a woman matching Jimenez's description was seen dangling her feet over the water's edge. But Pino said no one actually saw the attack.
Whether Jimenez drowned or died from her injuries won't be determined until an autopsy is performed today.
Being killed by an alligator is extremely rare. There have only been 25 fatal alligator attacks in Florida since 1948 and none in Broward and Miami-Dade counties, according to the Wildlife Commission.
"We don't know if this young lady was actually feeding the gator or not," Pino said. "But, we do know that once the alligator starts to lose its natural fear of humans it starts to perceive the human as a food source."
That is why tossing breadcrumbs or other food scraps at the reptiles is a crime, officials said.
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Comments (2)
There's a Rails-to-Trails s... (Below threshold)1. Posted by cirby | May 11, 2006 1:28 PM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
There's a Rails-to-Trails site called the Van Fleet Trail, out west of Orlando.
One time, I was out skating, enjoying the lovely swampscape (it's an old railroad right of way that's a few feet above water level). I topped one low hill, and saw some sort of medium-sized cat on the trail (I think it might have been a small cougar, not a Florida Panther). So I turned around, and started back the ten miles or so to my car, enjoying my little escape...
...right up until I saw the eight foot gator draped across the asphalt, a couple of miles before the car (or any way to get around the beast). I stopped, considered the really stupid move of getting a good runup and trying to get past, then went back a mile or so to a bench, where I sat until the sun went down a bit (no sun, gator can't sunbathe, gator moves. Usually.).
After an hour or so, I went back, just in time to see it plop into the swamp.
I haven't been back.
1. Posted by cirby | May 11, 2006 1:28 PM |
Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Posted on May 11, 2006 13:28
2. Posted by trikc | May 11, 2006 1:34 PM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Your level of patience is commendable. I have no doubt in my mind I would have made at least one attempt to get past it. Its so easy to be fool into thinking they wouldn't be as fast as you.
2. Posted by trikc | May 11, 2006 1:34 PM |
Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Posted on May 11, 2006 13:34