FORT MEADE, Fla. — A man who was found partially eaten by an alligator in Polk County died due to a methamphetamine overdose and not from an alligator attack, according to autopsy results released Wednesday.
On June 27 this year, 10News reported that a company employee at the Mosaic Co. in Ft. Meade came across an 11-foot alligator in a pond on the property that had a deceased man in its mouth, according to the Polk County Sheriff’s Office.
The body was identified as 45-year-old Michael Ford II, who was not an employee of Mosaic, deputies said. At the time, it was unclear whether the cause of death was an alligator attack or something else.
On Wednesday, the Medical Examiner's Office for Polk, Hardee and Highlands Counties released its findings. It cited “methamphetamine intoxication” as the cause of death and said the alligator attack looks to have happened after Ford had already died. It is still unclear why Ford was on the property.
What other people are reading right now:
- Hundreds of truckers stranded across the country after company shuts down
- Boat Graveyard: More boats are moving out of the Bay after 10News' investigation
- Family pays tribute to 'Christmas Vacation' with epic light display
- Amazon delivery driver caught dumping packages in trash
- 124 people arrested as a part of Polk sheriff's 'Operation Santa's Naughty List'
- 12 Christmas light displays to see this year around Tampa Bay
FREE 10NEWS APP:
