Dramatic new body camera footage shows the horrifying aftermath of a fatal alligator attack that claimed the life of a homeless Florida grandmother as authorities try to determine what caused the tragedy.
Sabrina Peckham, 41, was killed in September after being dragged into a canal along a residential street in Largo, a small town four miles south of Clearwater.
After bystanders noticed Peckham’s body in the crocodile’s jaws, authorities used ropes and chains to pull the predator from the water, according to the video. Fox 13 obtained it.
Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission officers were seen laying the animal on the sidewalk, measuring it at a whopping 13 feet, 9.5 inches long, before shooting it dead with a rifle.
The crocodile was eventually cut open and FWC officers were able to remove parts of Peckham’s body.
While the reason why the beast carried her off remains a mystery, the accompanying FWC report offers some clues as to what led to the deadly encounter.
Peckham, who was homeless at the time, was living in a makeshift campsite just 35 feet from the canal. There was no evidence the crocodile had been at the campsite and there was no sign on Peckham’s body that he had been in the water before being pulled into the canal by the giant reptile.
However, park rangers wrote in their report that they believe they saw her walking in the area just a week earlier.
The canal, known as McKay Creek, is often used by alligators to travel between Ridgecrest Lake and Taylor Lake, according to the report.
Peckham had a history of trespassing on marshes, having previously trespassed half a mile from the murder scene just two months before.
His heartbroken daughter said at the time she found solace in her “excruciating pain” and hoped that Ms Peckham was “no longer in pain or hurt”.
Pinellas County has since installed fencing and signs to keep people away from the canal.
