A woman has been found dead in a Florida pond after being mauled to death by an alligator, it has been reported.
Authorities said they were called to the savage attack at a retention pond in Valrico on Independence Day.
They were called just after 8.30pm after the woman's body was spotted in the pond behind the Landing Bar and Grill.
The Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office said that alligators were known to frequent the pond in the same area where the body was discovered.
According to local media reports the woman, who is 29 and has not been named, was known to regularly swim in the pond where her body was found.
The county's medical examiner has not yet given a cause of death and an investigation into the incident is reported to be ongoing.
Sheriff Chad Chronister told WFLA: “What a tragic ending to the 4th of July holiday for this woman’s family and friends.
“I want to thank our local partners for their co-operation with this investigation as we work to learn what led up to her death.”
Chad Matthews, a trapper who works near the retention pond, told Wesh: "You’re at breeding season and basically the females are laying eggs and nesting. It could definitely be a bad situation for someone in the water.
"There’s a gator in there that’s probably between eight- and nine-foot, at least a couple years ago. It’s been there for years, as far as I know. I do know that people liked to throw marshmallows and feed the gator."
Michael Edge, who works nearby was reported to have called the discovery "shocking", saying that children regularly visited his business, WLFA reports.
He said: "It’s honestly shocking. You guys talking to me is literally the first time I heard of it. They didn’t mention anything in the area.
"I just hope it doesn’t, it doesn’t become, like, a habit. I don’t want more bodies showing up. That would be real scary."
