Customers at Murphy’s gas station near Liberty Walmart found themselves in the presence of a 7-foot alligator on Thursday, March 14. The new Texas game warden for Liberty County, Jason Avalos, shared insights into the unusual event.
“Typically, alligators are on the move in late spring and early summer for mating season, but this alligator seems to be a little ahead of the game,” Avalos remarked.
A native of Terrell, Texas, Avalos described this as his first hands-on experience in the capture and relocation of an alligator since his training at the game warden academy.
Upon arriving at the scene, Avalos collaborated with a Liberty police officer who had already secured the gator’s mouth and limbs with tape. Pct. 3 Deputy Constable Maritza Cespedes also assisted.
“The good thing is I got some hands-on experience on gators in the academy. Fortunately, by the time I arrived on the scene, one of the Liberty police officers had taped the gator’s mouth shut and its legs were taped up, so I just zip-tied the legs together in case it broke the tape on its way to its new home,” Avalos explained.
For Avalos, the challenges continued beyond the capture, as he described the intricacies of releasing an alligator independently.
“He was very mad,” Avalos shared with a chuckle.
The subsequent journey led Avalos to a hunting club off of CR 125, known for its high density of alligators, where he successfully released the captured reptile.
Recounting the release, Avalos described the cautious process of freeing the alligator before observing it slowly make its way into the water.
“He just kind of slowly walked into the water,” he recounted. “Hopefully he’s made some new buddies at his new home. It was a successful release.”
In the coming days, Bluebonnet News will share a story about the new game warden, his background and the journey that brought him to Liberty County.
Why does the story not say who was the brave officer who already had the gator’s feet taped up, before the game warden even made it there?
It does, twice. Once in the 4th paragraph also in the caption under the top picture. Pct. 3 Deputy Constable Maritza Cespedes