HARLAN COUNTY, KENTUCKY (NBC NEWS) - A man found a frozen gator in the backyard of his Kentucky home on Friday.
According to the Department of Fish and Wildlife, the gator appeared to have crawled out of the Clover Fork of the Cumberland River, and died from the cold temperatures.
Officials believe the gator was probably someone's pet that had been dumped into the river.
It is illegal to possess or transport alligators in the state of Kentucky.