Rewards totaling $3,500 in cash and gift certificates were offered Tuesday for tips leading to the arrest and conviction of whoever killed and dismembered an alligator taken from a pond in Evans.
"It really turned my stomach to read about this," said Mike Hall, whose company - Hall, Hall & Associates, CPAs - offered to finance a $500 reward. "I'm an avid outdoorsman myself, and I'd really like to see these guys caught."
The Humane Society of the United States offered an additional $2,500 as an incentive for information, said Cheryl McAuliffe, the group's Georgia director.
Such rewards have been effective in shaking loose clues for animal cruelty cases, she said. "We had a guy in south Georgia who burned some kittens last year," she said. A $3,000 reward helped lead to an arrest.
Also on Tuesday, the First Saturday Crew - a group that works on cleanup projects along the Augusta Canal - contributed $200 in restaurant certificates to the fund, said spokesman Scott Hudson.
The 9-foot gator lived in a pond off Washington Road behind Brown Feed & Seed.
During the weekend, trespassers killed the gator and used a reciprocating saw to remove its head, tail and two front legs.
Georgia's Wildlife Resources Division is investigating and has asked for the public's help .
Law Enforcement Sgt. Mark Padgett of the division's regional office in Thomson said anyone willing to share information on the case can contact him directly at (706) 737-1480 between 8 a.m. and 4 p.m.
The identity of callers willing to provide information will remain confidential, he said, and they can still claim a reward without a name being made public.
Reach Rob Pavey at (706) 868-1222, ext. 119, or rob.pavey@augustachronicle.com.
EARLIER COMMENTS:
All gators need to be done away with. Living in Florida just about all of my life, these animals are a menace to humans. Does anyone know how many children and animals are killed each year by these reptiles?
Posted by smbga
When they catch the killers, they need to be sentenced to 45 minutes in the pond with this gator's older brothers ... let the punishment fit the crime!
Posted by Dixieman
Poaching is wrong, but gators don't belong in our area, especially in places where people can come in contact with them unawares. I hope the poachers enjoyed the gator tail and have to pay a fine for poaching on private land. That sounds about right. This was a large, dangerous reptile with a brain the size of a wine bottle cork.
Posted by Fiat_Lux
Go ahead and narrow the list of suspects, we all know a pickup truck had to be involved, and at least one person named Bubba!
Posted by Don KING
The shame in this is that the reward offered for the killers of an ALLIGATOR is larger than the reward offered for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the person responsible for killing the young man at Salem Arms apartment complex. And where is the reward for information on the whereabouts of the man that beat that innocent one year old?
Posted by hopefulinaugusta
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How can I contribute to reward fund?
AC!! I like that! The "earlier comments" section. Yeah! Now can we have info on how to contribute to this reward, please? Thanks.
gators are natural to this area, and also endangered. I don't see a shortage of people. We need to protect this country's natural wildlife before it is all gone. Maybe 13 peopled have been killed by alligators since the year 2000. You have a higher chance of suffering a heart attack from all the junk food we eat than by an alligator. I hope the person who killed the gator is found. I would help even if there wasn't a reward to find them.
Well, I like it when animals get more respect and admiration than people. I'm guessing this was a liberal alligator. I wonder if it tasted angry and bitter.
no the critter is not a thug and was not putting himself in and around the wrong crowd
elbrynn, they are no longer endangered and a lot of Georgia counties have a season. That said this incident was poaching and
senseless.
Has anyone gutted the gator to see what Wally had been eating? Might as well make sure, right? That little pond isnt big enough to provide sustainable food for that big critter. He was either fed by Mr. Brown, or it ate whatever came close enough. No fence, no signs, no shirt, no shoes, no problem.
AMAZING...$3500 reward being offered for an alligator that was killed... Yet on $1000 reward being offered for the killer who murdered that poor man at Salem Arms Apartments. DISGUSTING!!
3500 dollars....why not 130 million...that seems to be the going rate for dogs. Why not make it the rate for alligators. You PETA supporters make me SICK!!!!!!!!
Why helpicantfindthe spacebar, why the personal attack on me? What if's are how we as analytical animals with the biggest and bestest brains on This planet, DOMINATE OVER ALL OTHER CRITTERS. This isnt a tradjedy, it is almost not even news. Now if we gutted that gator and found, Human or local pet remains that would be NEWS. Yeah Wally gator is dead, and he is missing his head, but it isnt that dang important. It is a dang animal, who if he had been in his natural environment, may have lived much longer than he did in that pond. But where he was, in a public place where some people knew he was there, and most people didnt, posed a threat to the public. Maybe you and others LOVE animals (wild or domestic), but you cannot be blinded by the dangers of this creature. That Gator doesnt care if you LOVE and FEED him, he will EAT you, if he had the chance. All you upset people should be angry at MR. Brown, for endangering the public and the Gator, for not taking the proper precautions to protect both. As for the DNR, If this story did involve, the death or attack of a person or a domestic pet, you could bet your butt, they would be elbow deep in Mr Brown's a-hole. They wouldnt say its ok
marandan, it had two leather dog collars, 5 cat collars, a fake rolex (it is believed the roles belonged to jimmy hoffa), two timex's (that were still ticking) and three gold grills) hmmm!
While it would have been better to have the authorities remove this alligator to a more acceptable habitat, I don't fault whoever killed it. Alligators are non-discriminatory predators. They don't care if their prey is animal or human. Alligators are not pets. They will hurt you. The bigger they get, the more they will hurt (read KILL!) The perpetrator should have been a little smarter and buried the carcass. Then, all this fussing over a dead dangerous predator would not be ongoing.
This story assumes that someone else, tresppassed onto the property, but it may have been the workers who say they found it dead. When investiGATORS of a homicide do the initial accessment, the person to last see the victim alive, is always a suspect and usually the perp. Why should it be any different, with wally. Investigate inside and then work your way out. I hope all these contributors will donate that same amount for a murder victims family or someone burned out of their home. Where are your priorities. PEOPLE are MORE IMPORTANT.
To: marandan. I agree, you're not important either. God made the alligator, but not you.....
Although this seems to be a senseless killing, it was an ALLIGATOR and everyone knows that GEORGIA DAWGS don't like Gators in any shape, form, or fashion. Hopefully this is a sign, an omen for the UGA-FLA football game this season. But back to a serious moment: gators are not actually native to this area of the state, mostly being found south of the fall line which is where Augusta lies. Because alligators are no longer an endangered species why all the anger? I would suppose that the perpetrators of this gator's demise might be guilty of poaching, it's not a murder - every day people kill unborn babies in worse ways than this. Where is the outrage over that, where are the monetary rewards being offered for catching THOSE killers? Our perspectives in this country are topsy turvy - we care more about an alligator, who in reality was "trespassing" on human grounds, than an innocent baby whose development in the womb should be the safest place in the world. So withdraw all that reward money and put it to better use and move on. GO DAWGS!
Well stated Coastaldawg, and I agree, this is a prelude to what will happen when the Dawgs go down to the swamp to do some hunting. Everyone will hear the Gator yelp when the Dawgs bite em on the tail. I stated you same point yesterday. If some care so much about animals being hurt or killed, go down to the Augusta abortion clinic and stop them fromkilling all those animals we call humans. Some really have their priorities mixed up. Some think wild animals are more important, and some think sex is just for fun. "If it feels good , do it". Maybe some feel good killin Gators!!!!
Where is the thug Vick? Maybe he and his bro's took care of it. No, I imagine this gator would be a little tougher than those caged dogs.
i know where that pond is located and a 9 foot gator is huge. it was obviously put there years ago. very curious as to what the gator ate? probably store bought chickens? unless its a big pond or tons of wildlife live around it, a 9 footer could clean out a small pond in no time. anyone ever fished the pond or familiar with this gator? are there others in the pond. for it's remote location from the canal/sav. river, having a gator population there would be very unusual?
Yeah Scorehouse, the more anyone thinks about this story, the more it doesn't add up to the cute little alligator who never hurt anyone and was brutally muslimized(beheaded) by an unsavory sap, that took wally gator out of his prime. It was open for public access, with no warning signs and no fence. Someone may have went there to swim or fish, was surprised or possibly attacked by the Critter, and took him down. I think Mr. Brown should be glad he isnt being sued for negligence and endangering the public. Right now it has only costed him, a Head and two legs.
This Hall man is an avid outdoors man...so he enjoys killing animals and has pity for an alligator who is an aggresive carnivore. WOnder what he prefers to kill....non-aggresive herbivores??
At least Vick is not being talked about now.
Why isnt Mrs. Mcaullife, bringing a suit against Mr Brown, for enslaving this poor critter, kidnapping, endangering its life, by not protecting it from the surly redneck crowd that frequents his business? It is well known that Humans can and will kill, when provoked, or when hungry. It is also stated that many people knew it was there, which potentially made it a target. Maybe this was a hate crime, probably a GATOR HATER. GIVE me the $2500, and I will find out who did this(INVESTI-GATOR), and I think I could also find a lawyer willing to bring suit against Mr. Brown. Heck, we may even make money on this. (Movie and BOOK rights are mine) By the way, Has anyone notified wallygators' next of kin? Man, what a great, sad story. Has Mr. Browns' business picked up, since the NEWS broke? Is he selling snacks, and giving tours? Did the gator die of old age, and Mr. Brown's business needed some publicity? Does he have an agent? I am just funnin everyone, but can't you see the absurdity of this whole story? A reward for the Gator HATER? C'mon!!!!!
you can go to prison for killing a deadly animal?
Bubba "what you in here for man?"
ally killer "I killed a alligator, MAN!"
Bubba "you so bad dood, you need anything killah, let me know!"
street cred for killing alligators is going to be pretty darn high in prison!
The main issue is still the fact that individuals came onto private property, killed an animal that didn't belong to them and left the carcass on that property. It could have been a horse, dog or deer. It was still on private property. Like it or not.
Yes, it's a shame that someone killed the animal the way that they did, but most have a valid point in saying that this could have lead to a dangerous accident (deadly). Alot of people travel down that dirtroad by Brown Feed & Seed, as well as bike and walk through. The person who left the comment about the reward being higher for the lead of an arrest for the animal killers verses a human life-YES, how sickening is that.
Michael Vick and kin, fought, killed , and abused dogs on private property also. The fact remains that we all assume somebody trespassed. Maybe it was done by an angry employee. None of us know the truth, we are simply going on what Mr.Brown reported. Gut the Critter and see what it has eaten recently. Maybe someone took revenge for what wally ate. WE dont know what really happened, so why shouldnt we check every possibility. This really smells like an inside job. Either way, since it is dead, GUT IT and make sure there isn't more to this story than just a dead gator. Maybe the killer cut off his head and arms so it would be harder to identify him. hahahaha Thats funny right there, I dont care who you are.
marandan do you have nothing better to do than post over and over all day long (not just today either but also the past couple days) about this alligator?! Get a life. We all get it that you could care less about the alligator so move on to a different posting! You don't know anything about the business where this pond is located or the man who owns it or the people who work there so stop speculating and accusing with no facts. I think what really is at issue is not really about a dead alligator but that a crime has been committed and the malicious butchering of an animal - not just the killing it self. Most sane people will question the character of someone who would kill an animal for entertainment (which they clearly did) and then butcher it. As for the reward, most of it came from the Humane Society. People who care about animals donate their money to the Humane Society so they can use it in order to help animals - so if that's what they have done with the money then I don't see how that is any of your business except of course if you donate to the Humane Society but I doubt that you do (don't take offense but from your postings you sound like a cruel, heartless person).
I don't think your funny. I think your idiot!
Does anyone know the fine for being convicted of poaching? I can't imagine it's any more than a few hundred dollars. They may as well have a buddy turn them in and then split the reward money when it's all said and done. This whole event is a little silly. But, having said that, if there was no good reason to harm the animal, they should have left it alone.
sstea, I am merely having fun with this trivial story, that so many seem to be shocked with occuring in pretty little sereen Evans. Where are all you folks from? Probably most of ya, are from up North, and amazed by just the site of a Gator. What do you animal lovers and animal society folks do for all the squirrels or oppossums, or deer that some terrible person ran over with their car. Put out a reward, or get some dog to track em down, so you can prosecute em? I understand, that it appears, someone trespassed, and a GATOR has come full circle in the chain of life, but it aint an attrocity. Maybe they ate the head and arms, would that make it better? Maybe it was homeless folks who came to fish there and found the gator to be the only thing edible there. We dont KNOW, so why must you animal lovers assume the worst, first? Gut the gator, and that will give a better direction in who did this. I am not heartless, but I have my priorities, and critters come below HUMANS, everytime. But that is just me. Hello, a little common sense, WE are the DOMINANT ANIMAL here on land. If you were swimming in that pond, would you rather see a person on shore watching you, or that Gator?