Crocodile found in Middlesbrough lock-up

Police had to tackle a snappy customer when they raided a Teesside lock-up and came face to face with a snarling crocodile. The carnivorous reptile, more at home in the wetlands of Venezuela, was discovered in a unit on a Middlesbrough industrial estate. But luckily for Cleveland Police, and officers from Middlesbrough Council, the croc was only a two-feet long baby.

The Spectacled Caiman could eventually grow to a hefty eight feet. A man has been arrested on suspicion of keeping a dangerous wild animal without a licence. Karen Larkin, the council’s senior environmental protection officer, took part in the swoop at Snowdon Road on Wednesday.



“The crocodile wasn’t too happy about being taken out of its tank, but we managed to fit it into a box and off it went,” she said. “It was only two-foot long, but it had really sharp teeth. Despite its size, it could still take your finger end off.” The crocodile, named Fluffy, has now been taken to the Heathrow Animal Reception Centre in London, where it will be checked by vets before being rehomed at a zoo or given to a new owner with the appropriate licence.

The animal was being kept as a pet by a 30-year-old exotic animals enthusiast from Middlesbrough. Council environmental inspectors found out about the crocodile by monitoring the owner’s comments on an internet forum. They passed on details to police, and a raid was carried out at a lock-up following a visit to a house in Park End. Mrs Larkin said: “I’ve been doing this job for nearly 20 years, and this is certainly the first time I’ve come across a crocodile.”