Colossal Gator 'Snaggletooth' Caught in South Carolina After Four-Year Hunt

A massive alligator, nicknamed "Snaggletooth," has been captured in Lake Moultrie, South Carolina, after a pursuit spanning four years. The 14-foot reptile tipped the scales at a remarkable 844 pounds, establishing it as the second-largest alligator ever recorded in the state.

Cole Poplin and William Ard of Renegade Bowfishing, accompanied by clients Chris and Craig Webb, harpooned the colossal creature on Monday around 11 p.m., according to The Post and Courier. Poplin stated that he had been tracking this particular alligator since 2022, referring to it as his "white whale."

"I spotted this gator four years ago, roughly," Poplin told the publication. "I’ve hunted this gator a lot over the last three or four years. Four years later, we have a magical night, and he just happened to slip up and make a mistake, and we made it count."

The hunters encountered initial difficulties in securing the beast and getting it onto their boat. "On the last bit of ground to cover Cole and I put eyes on a monster and all hell broke loose," Chris Webb recounted in a Facebook post. "We scrambled to get him harpooned. One was good, one bounced off. We ended up with 3 stuck in him and a treble by his front leg."

The alligator was measured at precisely 14 feet. The record for the largest alligator ever caught in South Carolina belongs to a 13-foot, 1,025-pound gator captured by Maryellen Mara-Christian at Lake Moultrie in 2010.