CONCORD, N.H. (AP) – A police officer has a new pet: a 28-inch-long alligator he pulled from a Concord pond.

Police said they think the reptile was an exotic pet that was abandoned.

Officers first tried a rope and pole to catch it, but that didn’t work.

They then bought a net and were able to pull it out of Horseshoe Pond and used bite-proof gloves to handle it safely.

Officer Kyle Finney is keeping the alligator in a tank at his home and hopes to donated it to a wildlife preserve.

-www.thewmurchannel.com/index.html

AP-ES-08-30-06 2253EDT