Alamosa – Authorities are investigating a Colorado man who has acknowledged calling media outlets to report that a 7-foot alligator had been captured from a Los Angeles lake – a report that turned out to be wrong.
Alamosa County Sheriff Dave Stong said Friday that James Solvig is under investigation on suspicion of criminal impersonation. No charges have been filed.
“In a roundabout way, he has acknowledged making a call,” Stong said. He declined to comment on whether Solvig said he had misrepresented himself.
The alligator, known as “Reggie,” was dumped in the lake several months ago. It has avoided repeated attempts at capture, including some made last month by Jay Young, whose family owns the Colorado Gator Farm and Reptile Park in the southern Colorado town of Mosca.
On Tuesday, a man claiming to be representing Young told the AP and other media outlets in Los Angeles that Young had caught the alligator overnight.
Solvig told the AP on Wednesday he made the original call reporting the alligator was captured, but he said he did not know the information was incorrect and that Young had asked him to do it. He denied misrepresenting himself as Young.
“I merely followed my employer’s orders,” he said. “It turned out to be a PR stunt.”
Young denied asking Solvig to make the call. “We don’t lie to get publicity. We don’t have to. We get plenty of good publicity,” Young said.
Solvig said he worked for the Colorado Gator Farm but quit last week after the false-capture report was made. Young said Solvig was not a regular employee but sometimes worked for Young’s father.
Solvig has been in jail since Wednesday, when his $5,000 bond was revoked on an unrelated trespassing charge, Stong said. Solvig is accused of entering someone else’s vehicle without permission on Sept. 1.
The sheriff said he did not know why the bond was revoked.
