Florida man arrested for allegedly trying to throw alligator onto cocktail lounge roof to ‘teach it lesson’

The creature had been stolen from a mini-golf course

A Florida man allegedly stole a live alligator from a mini-golf course, beat it and tried to hurl it onto the roof of a cocktail lounge, authorities have said.

William Hodge, 32, was arrested on Thursday in Daytona Beach Shores, where police spotted him slamming the animal by its tail against an awning, police said. They also saw him stamping on the alligator.

According to the New York Post, Mr Hodge told police the reason for the abuse was he was “teaching it a lesson”, the arrest report shows.

The alligator is expected to survive the attack.

Mr Hodge was taken into custody at the Volusia County Jail on charges including animal cruelty, alligator poaching, burglary of an unoccupied dwelling, criminal mischief and petty theft.

He told officers he had scaled a fence to an enclosure at Congo River Golf in Daytona Beach and taken the small alligator, according to an arrest report obtained by Fox 35 Orlando.

In a brief statement, posted on Facebook, the Daytona Beach Shores Department of Public Safety said: “The alligator was returned to management of Congo River Golf from where Hodge claimed to have stolen it.”

According to the Congo River Golf’s website, the company has eight locations in Florida, where guests can feed alligators during their visit.