Suspect used 3-foot alligator to threaten kidnapped man, police say

BRIDGEPORT, Conn. -- Connecticut police say a man who placed a 3-foot alligator on top of a man in an extortion attempt has been arrested. The Connecticut Post reports that 30-year-old Isaias Garcia, of Garland, Texas, was held on $250,000 bail after pleading not guilty Tuesday to charges including kidnapping and threatening.

Authorities say a 21-year-old man called his aunt April 6 to say he had been kidnapped and his abductor was demanding $800.

"Titi, I was wondering if you were gonna send that money, 'cause I really want to go home," the man was heard in a call to his aunt.

The aunt contacted police who told her to demand proof her nephew was OK. Police say she received a photograph of her nephew face down in a bathtub, the open-mouthed alligator on top of him.

"Titi, man, they got this alligator on me and they saying that if no money is given, they are gonna have him chewing on me," the victim said in a follow-up phone call, police said, according to the Connecticut Post.

Police traced the suspect's phone to a Shelton hotel where he was arrested. Online judicial court records did not list an attorney for Garcia.

Bridgeport Police Lt. Christopher LaMaine told the newspaper "this was no joke."

"It is an outrageous case, but it is clear from the evidence that this young man's life was in danger," he said.