What does it take to capture an alligator? A pole, a small net and a garbage can did the trick to get one off the front lawn of a northwest suburban home Tuesday night.
About 8:30 p.m., two Buffalo Grove police officers responded to a home in the 600 block of Pinehurst Lane after a resident called to say there was an alligator on their front lawn, Buffalo Grove police Sgt. Mike Millett said.
When officers arrived, the alligator scurried away. But police again soon after received a second call about a spotting and two additional officers were sent out, Millett said.
Officers touched the alligator, cornered it and went over to a Commonwealth Edison worker who was working on a downed transformer nearby.
"They asked him if he had a pole and he handed over a 30-foot pole," Millett said. "Along with it, they used a net we catch small animals with and a garbage can and herded in the alligator by grabbing it upside down."
The three-foot alligator was then brought back into a police garage where it will be held until the ABC Humane Wildlife Rescue, Control and Prevention can transfer it to a facility on Wednesday, Millett said.
The alligator is believed to have been an illegal pet that escaped and was "surprisingly" strong, according to officers at the scene, Millett said.
"My officers did it right because we didn't have to hurt it," Millett said.
