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Eugene Bozzi was put in the spotlight this week after a video of him trapping an alligator in a trash can in Florida went viral.
“Someone has to step in and do something,” Bozzi told NBC affiliate WESH in Orlando, Fla. “We all have to look out for each other, right? “
The Philadelphia native has only been in the Sunshine State for a year.
“I don’t know the procedures, so I did it my way,” said Bozzi, an army veteran and dad.
In the viral clip posted to social media on Tuesday, he could be seen confronting the alligator with a trash can open to the side in a front yard. Dressed in shorts, a t-shirt, socks and slippers, Bozzi can be seen in the clip approaching the reptile as it steps back.
The footage captured him struggling with the alligator waving around inside the trash can before finally closing the lid, securing his capture.
“I was scared when I had him in because he was so powerful, and I didn’t expect it,” Bozzi said. “And he was pushing himself, whipping his tail.”
He said he moved the trash to the retention basin where the alligator was released.
Since the incident went viral, Bozzi said he had been inundated with messages.
“I have so many inboxes, DMs, women saying things, men saying things, people I know, friends,” he said.
The wild encounter has even caught the attention of authorities and wildlife officials.
The official Twitter account for Orange County, Florida, retweeted the video, saying, “Reminder: Alligators are not recyclable in your blue lid cart. “
Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission added: “Concerned about an alligator? Don’t take the trash, call our hotline at 866-FWC-GATOR (866-392-4286) and we can send a REAL alligator trapper.”
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