PICTURED: Sabrina Peckham, 41, who was eaten by alligator and dragged by 14-foot beast in shock attack video was arrested three months ago for trespassing in wetlands
- Sabrina Peckham, 41, was eaten by the alligator after being dragged around by the 14-foot beast into a canal on Friday in Largo, Clearwater
- Two months before her death, Peckham was arrested on July 14 for trespassing on a county wetland just half a mile from where she was mauled
A homeless Florida woman who was mauled to death and dragged into a waterway by a huge alligator had been arrested just months ago for trespassing in wetlands.
Sabrina Peckham, 41, was found in the jaws of the alligator after being dragged by the 14-foot beast into a canal on Friday in Largo, Clearwater. Her formal cause of death is yet to be determined.
‘No matter how you put it, no one deserves to die like this,’ her daughter wrote on social media.
Two months before her death, Peckham was arrested on July 14 for trespassing on a county wetland just half a mile from where she was mauled, reports WFLA. She was ordered to pay $500 for that incident.
This was not the first time that she was apprehended for trespassing, as she has multiple misdemeanors to her name dating to 2014, records show. Peckham also had a history of theft convictions and run-ins with the police.
Several local residents spotted the gruesome sight of Peckham’s death on Friday afternoon, and as the alligator dragged its prey away and began to record the scene while alerting the Largo Fire Department.
Sabrina Peckham was named as the homeless Florida woman who was mauled to death and dragged into a waterway by a huge alligator
Sabrina Peckham (left) pictured with her daughter Breauna Dorris. Peckham, 41, was found in the jaws of the alligator after bein g dragged by the 14-foot beast into a canal on Friday in Largo, Clearwater. Her formal cause of death is yet to be determined
Several local residents spotted the gruesome sight of Peckham’s death on Friday afternoon, and as the alligator dragged its prey away and began to record the scene while alerting the Largo Fire Department
Emergency responders, together with the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, managed to pull the alligator from the water before shooting it dead, with officials describing it as having been ‘humanely killed’ following the horrific attack
Peckham’s daughter, Breauna Dorris, announced the sad news on social media.
She wrote, along with posting about the family’s GoFundMe: ‘The past 24 hours have been filled with grief and sorrow and unbearable pain for our family.
‘My mother, Sabrina Peckham was the victim of the alligator attack at McCay Creek (rainbow village). Please understand that we do not have all information yet as the medical examiners report is not yet finished.
‘Some details I would like to share is that my mother did not ‘taunt’ the alligator as some are saying in the news outlets comments.
The Florida alligator was found with a dead body clamped between its jaws as it made its way down a canal near Clearwater
Emergency responders, along with the Florida FWC successfully removed the alligator from the water and subsequently euthanized it
‘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 camp site near the creek in the dark and the alligator attacked from the water.
‘We expected to have many many more years with her. Unfortunately god has called her home sooner than our hearts were ready.’
Dorris addressed her mother in a heartfelt statement: ‘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.
‘Please protect us. I’m so sorry this happened to you. I pray you are at peace and you are no longer struggling or hurting. I pray you found momo and pop and you all are watching down from above.’
Jennifer Dean, who lived nearby to where the woman was killed, said: ‘A lot of my neighbors were out here and they’re the ones that told me about the gator.
The 14-foot reptile held its victim tightly between its powerful jaws as is paddled down the waterway, in the small town of Largo
‘While we were standing here we heard a shot, I assume they killed the gator.’
Once the alligator was dead, the Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office were then able to retrieve the victim’s body from the water.
‘I could tell there was a body in his mouth, so I started recording,’ JaMarcus Bullard said to Bay News 9.
‘I came down to the fire department and reported it to them,’ he said.
Investigators also took time to examine the gator, which measured almost 14 feet in length.
It’s believed the deadly reptile had come from a nearby alligator-infested lake known as Ridgecrest Park.
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