Alligator captured after it’s spotted in the Passaic River

ELMWOOD PARK (AP) — State wildlife officials say an alligator spotted in the Passaic River has been captured.

But it's still not clear how the reptile ended up in the North Jersey waterway.

The alligator, estimated to be about 4 to 5 feet long, was caught around noon Wednesday. That ended a pursuit that had started nearly four hours earlier after it was first spotted by a fisherman in Elmwood Park.

The alligator was handed over to the state Fish and Wildlife Division.

Elmwood Park police speculated that the alligator may have been someone's pet that grew too big and was dumped in the river by its owner. But wildlife officials say they are still investigating how it got there, noting that finding an alligator here "is not a common occurrence."

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