By Tim Binnall
In a bizarre story out of Alaska, a heated argument over an anime culminated with a pet alligator being killed and a companion crocodile missing. The wild incident reportedly unfolded earlier this month in the city of Wasilla when brothers Tyler and Rickey Lowe had a few drinks and got into a dispute about an unnamed Japanese cartoon. It would seem that each of them had passionate opinions about the anime as the argument soon turned into a brief scuffle. Following the scrap, police say, things further escalated when Tyler threw Rickey's pet alligator out the window of their apartment. Like something out of a twisted sitcom, the aggrieved reptile owner responded by doing the same to his brother's companion crocodile.
After leaving the scene of the showdown with his two-year-old child in tow, Ricky reported the incident to police, who arrived on the scene to make sense of the incredibly strange incident. To that end, neighbor Matt Strickland recalled being approached by an Alaska state trooper who asked if he had "seen an alligator run past here." Astounded by the odd question, he replied "you guys are kidding, right." In turn, the cop answered, "no, I'm a state trooper, I wouldn't kid about something like that." Strickland indicated that not only had he seen no sign of the reptiles, but that he had no idea the exotic animals were even being kept in the apartment next door.
Eventually, the troopers managed to locate Rickey's alligator, which wound up no worse for wear following the misadventure. Unfortunately, the same could not be said for the crocodile, which was never found and is believed to have perished somewhere in the snow outside the building. The fracas ultimately resulted in both brothers being charged with animal cruelty and assault. However, in something of a cruelly ironic loophole, the former charge was dropped in Rickey's case since police lacked probable cause as the crocodile could not be found. Lest one think he got off easy, the bad-tempered brother was also hit with DUI and child endangerment charges for allegedly driving away from the scene while intoxicated with his kid in the car.