Alachua County Sheriff deputies arrested a UF student last week for missing his court date after he was charged for owning an illegal alligator skin.
Cristov Dosev, 22, received a citation in December after the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission found the skin behind his Kappa Alpha fraternity home, commission district spokesman Brad Stanley said.
Dosev is listed as the fraternity’s president on the UF Interfraternity Council’s website, and he reportedly told FWC officers the skin belonged to him.
Stanley said offenders usually receive a notice to appear in court and are fined up to $500. "Evidently he didn’t go to his court date," he said.
Hunters can apply for a permit to kill alligators every year, and random applicants are picked to receive two tags.
Dosev told officers the body was roadkill, Stanley said, but unless the alligator’s tail is tagged, it’s illegal to own.
Dosev could not be reached for comment as of press time.
He is a senior in the UF College of Business, according to UF spokesman Steve Orlando.
Police arrested Dosev on a charge for the unlawful possession of an alligator skin and took him to the Alachua County Jail where he was released Wednesday afternoon on a $500 bond.
Contact Giuseppe Sabella at gsabella@alligator.org and follow him on Twitter @gsabella
