A Town of Palm Beach resident was arrested at his high-end limestone business after admitting to shooting an alligator and striking it multiple times in the head with a hammer, according to an arrest report.
Desmond Keogh, 66, was charged Monday, Oct. 19 by the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission with illegal killing, possessing or capturing an alligator without a license and discharging a firearm in public.
Keogh is owner and president of Haifa Limestone in West Palm Beach, which sources limestone from quarries around the world. His company and its projects have been featured in The Scout Guide Palm Beach and Luxe Magazine.
An anonymous caller, who claimed the hammer was still sticking out of the alligator's forehead, alerted FWC
to the incident. It was unclear from the report if the alligator was killed on the business property, part of which abuts an retention pond.
Keogh told officers he shot the alligator one time in the head on Sunday, Oct. 18 and hit it repeatedly in the head with a hammer, according to the arrest report.
If you are concerned about an alligator, the FWC has a Statewide Nuisance Alligator Program with a gator hotline.
The Statewide Nuisance Alligator Program (SNAP) will issue a permit to one of its contracted nuisance alligator trappers, authorizing the removal of the gator if warranted.
Kimberly Miller is a journalist for the USA TODAY NETWORK FLORIDA. She covers weather, the environment and critters as the Embracing Florida reporter. If you have news tips, please send them to kmiller@pbpost.com. You can get all of Florida’s best content directly in your inbox each weekday by signing up for the free newsletter, Florida TODAY, at palmbeachpost.com/newsletters.
This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Florida man, 66, shot and bashed alligator with hammer, police say
