Gator in the bank!
by MCL staff writer

Gator in the bank! Bennie West, straightens the leg of a huge alligator in the lobby of Ameris Bank.

The call came in Friday, "Get down here to Ameris Bank with your camera. There is a gator in the bank."

There are not many banks in this area, or the world, who can say that a giant alligator is in the lobby. Think of what customers might have thought when this 12 foot plus gator was looking them in the eye when they came in with their money. The gator was gone and only the skin was left, but it was an awesome sight to behold.

One customer stated that he had always heard the old saying being up to your rear in alligators, but this looked like the real thing.

West stated that a skin mount like this ran approximately $3000.00

It's that time of year again when hunters, with the right credentials, can go out looking for that giant alligator. That is when this 12 1/2 foot, 549 pound reptile was killed in 2006 by a Mrs. Julie Lawrance, of Atlanta. Bennie West, a state reptile hunter, was on the state sponsored alligator hunt when the large alligator was harvested. Hunters must be chosen each year to harvest these reptiles that have gone off the endangered

Gary Lawrance, Julie's husband, killed the state record gator in 2006, measuring 13 feet eight inches in length.

Mrs. Lawrance's father was to go on a state gator hunt with Bennie West on Friday night to get an even bigger alligator, if they were lucky.

The Department of Natural Resources allows a limited number of hunters to go and harvest a certain amount of alligators each year since they have come off the endangered species list. Hunting and trade of alligators and skins are still regulated by U.S. Fish and Wildlive Service.

Alligators are found in the Southwestern United States and reach lengths of over 19 feet and weights of over 1000 pounds. They can travel up to 30 m.p.h. for short sprints and are best left alone.