By Marcia Moore
SUNBURY -- A man's attempt to shoplift a foot-long American alligator was foiled when a pet store employee chased the fleeing thief until he ditched the reptile in a yard.
A tall, hooded man snatched the alligator from a tank at Pet World near Sunbury, stuffed it into a white bag and fled the store Wednesday night. The thief ran out of the Upper Augusta Township shop clutching the bag around 7 p.m., with the worker close on his heels.
The suspect pulled the reptile from the bag and tossed it in a nearby yard on Green Street, where the employee was able to capture the alligator.
"The guy's priorities are screwed up," Pet World owner Scot Miller said Friday. "If you don't have money to buy a gator, you probably don't have money to buy food."
The thief, who was not caught, is described as being a white male, standing 6 feet tall, weighing 185 pounds, and having brown hair. He wore jeans and a blue hooded sweat shirt.
Miller said he was in the basement, three employees were in the store and several customers were shopping when the man came in, walked directly to the tank containing two small alligators on sale for $129.99 apiece and took off with one of them.
The theft was witnessed by an employee who did not recognize the man, said Miller, who's operated the pet shop since 1991.
Miller said he's sold several small American alligators, which can grow up to 20 feet long, and pet owners often return them to his store when they get bigger.
He has one full-grown alligator on display in his shop, along with three lemurs and a capuchin monkey, all of which are not for sale.
State police at Stonington are investigating.
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