He went to leave a package at the post office and found an alligator over 2 meters in the premises

(CNN Spanish) – A person who came to a United States Postal Service office to drop off a package found an alligator more than 2 meters in length at the front desk of the branch, the Hernando County Sheriff’s Office reported.

The finding was reported around 3:32 AM on Wednesday in Spring Hill, about 49 miles north of Tampa on Florida’s west coast, according to the Bureau’s report in a Facebook post.

Hours before the discovery of the animal in the branch, an alligator sighting had been reported in the area, which was not found by the authorities, Michael Perry, deputy official of Public Information of the Office of the Sheriff. Perry said they believed it was the same animal.

According to the Sheriff’s Office, the alligator would have managed to enter the post office because it has automatic doors that allow access to the reception. Perry added that encounters between alligators and people are very rare in this area, and that this animal possibly came out of a lake located next to a nearby park.

Authorities said in the statement that the animal was “safely removed” from the branch by a specialized person, although Perry said he had no further information on what happened next to the reptile.