Crocodile relocation sparks spirited debate in Miami-Dade neighborhood, residents say
During the morning hours, one of the two crocodiles, a female, wandered toward a resident's doorstep for the second time in recent weeks. Local authorities were called and a trapper with the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission drove over to collect her.
The crocodile had its legs and mouth zip-tied, blood taken, tagged and then placed in the back of a pick-up truck as Miami-Dade Sheriff's Office deputies and residents watched nearby. The wildlife agent told the Miami Herald that the crocodile would be relocated away from people.
In recent months, two crocodiles strayed from their man-made lake home, where they often sunbathed, to the front lawns of some neighboring homes, residents said.
According to neighbors, the animals have caused controversy between residents who consider them a threat to pets and children and those who believe the animals should be left alone as they're protected under the Federal Endangered Species Act.
On the NextDoor app, neighbors were blaming gates on the canals as a reason for the crocodiles moving into neighborhoods.
As some argued over how to handle the problem of 'ambush predators,' others contended humans need to do more for reptiles just trying to find a place to live.
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Associated Press
11 minutes ago
- Associated Press
A car accident in small-town Tennessee leads to US charges against a major Mexican drug operation
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The cases, as outlined in court documents, provide a glimpse into how drugs produced by violent cartels in large labs in Mexico flow across the U.S. border and reach American streets. They also highlight the violent fallout that drug trafficking leaves in its path from the mountains of Mexico to small U.S. towns. 'These cases in particular serve as a powerful reminder of the insidious impacts that global cartels can have on our local American communities,' Matthew Galeotti, acting assistant attorney general in charge of the Justice Department's criminal division said in an interview with The Associated Press. 'The chain started with a violent cartel in Mexico and it ended with law enforcement being shot at in a small town.' United Cartels is an umbrella organization made up of smaller cartels that have worked for different groups over time. It holds a fierce grip over the western state of Michoacan, Mexico. United Cartels is not as widely known as Jalisco New Generation, but given its role as a prolific methamphetamine producer, it has become a top tier target for U.S. law enforcement. It was one of eight groups recently named foreign terrorist organizations by the Trump administration. A car crash and an abandoned protective case The case goes back to 2019, when two dealers got into a car accident in a small town outside Knoxville, Tennessee, according to a search warrant affidavit filed in court. While fleeing the scene of the crash, they threw a hardened protective case filled with meth behind a building before being caught by police, according to court documents. Authorities began investigating, using wiretaps, search warrants and surveillance to identify a man believed to be leading a major drug ring in the Atlanta area: Eladio Mendoza. The investigation into Mendoza's suspected drug operation led law enforcement in early 2020 to a hotel near Atlanta. During their surveillance, authorities spotted a man leaving with a large Doritos bag. Troopers tried to stop the man after he drove from Georgia into Tennessee but he fled and fired an AK-style rifle at officers, hitting one in the leg before another trooper shot him. Inside the bag, police found meth and heroin, and identified him as a low-level dealer for Mendoza's drug ring, court records say. Weeks later, authorities searched properties linked to Mendoza and seized phones. They discovered messages between Mendoza and a close associate of 'El Abuelo,' the leader of United Cartels, that showed the drugs were coming from Mexico, according to the court records. On one of Mendoza's properties, investigators found a tractor trailer that had crossed from Mexica days earlier. When they searched it, authorities seized 850 kilograms of meth hidden in the floor of the truck and discovered more drugs inside a bus and a home on the property, court papers say. 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The Hill
an hour ago
- The Hill
The Venezuelan dictator's days are numbered
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American Military News
2 hours ago
- American Military News
US teen pilot detained in Antarctica
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