Alligator-Qaeda?

Associated Press
Oct. 27, 2003 11:15 AM

NEWARK, N.J. - An alligator was captured inside the baggage hold of an airliner on Monday after escaping from its crate.

The young alligator, just 4 to 5 feet long and weighing as little as 10 pounds, remained inside a burlap bag with its mouth bound shut, American Airlines spokesman Tim Wagner said.

Officers captured it with a looped device and put it back in its crate with three other gators shipped from Miami, officials said.

Authorities were looking into how the reptile got out.

The gator was found outside its box when the cargo hold of the Boeing 767 was opened, Wagner said.

Officials said they did not know why the alligators were being shipped. But their paperwork was in order, Wagner said.