Officials shot the alligator to death after dragging it out of the water.
The daughter of an American woman who lost her life to a 14-foot alligator expressed that her family was grappling with excruciating sorrow and agony. The alligator was found in a canal with a body in its jaws on Friday in Florida, as reported by the New York Post. It was sighted by a witness on a residential street in Largo, a small community located just four miles south of Clearwater Beach. Breauna Dorris, the victim's daughter, posted on Facebook that her mother, Sabrina Peckham, was homeless and living in a forested area close to the incident scene.
Dorris speculated that her mother, aged 41, might have been on her way to her campsite when the alligator attack occurred. She also refuted several rumours circulating on social media that suggested her mother had 'taunted' the alligator.
"Some details I would like to clarify are that my mother did not 'taunt' the alligator, as some news outlets and comments are suggesting," Ms Dorris wrote. "My mother was a part of the homeless population that lived in the nearby wooded area. It is believed that she may have been walking to or from her campsite near the creek in the dark, and the alligator attacked from the water," she added. Ms Dorris said, "Regardless of the circumstances, no one deserves to die in this manner."
Addressing her mother, she wrote, "To my mother: I love you more than I ever expressed, I miss you more than you'll ever know, and I pray that you are looking down over me and your grandchildren."
Furthermore, she mentioned, "Within 24 hours, we have raised over $4,000, which will be used for funeral and burial expenses."
Alligator attack: Witness account and emergency response
"I could tell there was a body in its mouth, so I started recording," the outlet quoted the witness, JaMarcus, as saying. Mr Bullard, who was on his way to a job interview, promptly called the Largo Fire Department, which was not far from the shocking scene.
Upon their arrival, the emergency crew shot the alligator several times after pulling it from the water, according to Mr Bullard.
Jennifer Dean, a local resident, said, "Many of my neighbours who were present at the scene informed me about the gator". Both the victim and the alligator were retrieved from the canal, according to the Pinellas County Sheriff's Office.
When investigators arrived at the scene, they were standing next to a large, blood-stained alligator. The location is in close proximity to the popular Ridgecrest Park, which features a five-acre lake known for harbouring alligators.
Ms Dean claimed that alligators frequently inhabit the region, but the one that died on Friday was among the largest she had ever seen.