Now that Steve Irwin is no longer a threat, Reggie seems comfortable with emerging from his hiding place. We thought his overdue emergence in 2005 ended this unusual story.
We were wrong.
Read about the sighting from the Daily Breeze:
April 30, 2007 — Machado Lake’s elusive alligator hadn’t been seen since October of 2005, when a park worker spied him early today. Another city worker confirmed a second sighting at 2:30 p.m.
After more than a year of lying low, the elusive alligator was spotted today in the murky waters of Harbor City’s Machado Lake, according to Harvey Drut, a spokesman for the Los Angeles Recreation and Parks Department.
Mike Molina, chief of staff for City Councilwoman Janice Hahn, said a park worker saw the gator around 1 p.m. today. Molina went to the lake to see for himself, and spotted an alligator around 2:30 p.m.
Reggie apparently has grown since he was last seen in October 2005. Back then he was estimated to be about 6 feet in length but those who saw the gator today put him at 7 feet.
A series of trappers was unsuccessful in catching Reggie since he was first spotted during the summer of 2005 in the 53-acre lake at Ken Malloy Harbor Regional Park. Their efforts were suspended during the winter months because the alligator was expected to hibernate.
After months went by without any sightings, authorities speculated the reptile may have died or traveled to a nearby flood control channel.
Alligators are not native to California and it is illegal to keep them as pets. Reggie was apparently dumped into Machado Lake by a former police officer and an accomplice when the alligator became too large for a backyard pond.
Ex-officer Todd Natow and Anthony Brewer, both from San Pedro, were arrested in August 2005. Natow, an LAPD officer from 1984 to 2001, pleaded not guilty to 14 misdemeanors stemming from the alleged possession of the alligator and the reptile’s release into the lake.
Brewer pleaded no contest to a violation of the state Fish and Game Code for releasing an alligator into the lake, and was sentenced to three years probation and 45 days of work with the California Department of Transportation.
Since Reggie was first spotted, parts of the shoreline have been blocked off and signs posted warning visitors of the presence of the alligator.
Until his death last year, famed crocodile hunter Steve Irwin communicated via e-mail with the city’s Recreation and Parks Department, providing tips on how to search for and catch Reggie.