2
Meth Gators

Meth Gators

Updated Jul 23, 2019 at 12:53PM EDT by Adam.

Added Jul 23, 2019 at 11:56AM EDT by Adam.

PROTIP: Press 'i' to view the image gallery, 'v' to view the video gallery, or 'r' to view a random entry.

This submission is currently being researched & evaluated!

You can help confirm this entry by contributing facts, media, and other evidence of notability and mutation.

About

Meth Gators refers to the brief panic caused by a Facebook post by the Loretto, Tennessee Police Department which told followers to not flush drugs down the toilet lest the drugs go into the sewage and create hyperactive alligators high on methamphetamine. After becoming a national story, the department was forced to clarify that there are no such thing as meth gators and the post was a joke.

Origin

On July 13th, 2019, the Loretto Police Department posted to Facebook about a drug raid they had completed in which they discovered the perpetrator attempting to flush methamphetamine and drug paraphernalia down the toilet.[1] In the post, they wrote (emphasis added):

"On a more or less serious note: Folks…please don’t flush your drugs m’kay. When you send something down the sewer pipe it ends up in our retention ponds for processing before it is sent down stream. Now our sewer guys take great pride in releasing water that is cleaner than what is in the creek, but they are not really prepared for meth. Ducks, Geese, and other fowl frequent our treatment ponds and we shudder to think what one all hyped up on meth would do. Furthermore, if it made it far enough we could create meth-gators in Shoal Creek and the Tennessee River down in North Alabama. They’ve had enough methed up animals the past few weeks without our help. So, if you need to dispose of your drugs just give us a call and we will make sure they are disposed of in the proper way.

The post gained over 700 likes and reactions as well as 830 shares.


Loretto Police Department Like This Page July 13 Early this morning Officers with the Loretto Police Department, with assistance from the Lawrence County Deputies, served a search warrant at 112 First Avenue in Loretto. Once inside the home Officers found Andy Perry attempting to flush methamphetamine along with several items of paraphernalia. He was unsuccessful. Perry was arrested for Possession of Schedule II (Meth) for Resale, Possession of Drug Paraphernalia, and Tampering with Evidence. 12 grams of Methamphetamine, 24 fluid ounces of liquid meth, and several items of paraphernalia were seized. Perry is being held at the Lawrence County Jail On a more or less serious note: Folks...please don't flush your drugs m'kay. When you send something down the sewer pipe it ends up in our retention ponds for processing before it is sent down stream. Now our sewer guys take great pride in releasing water that is cleaner than what is in the creek, but they are not really prepared for meth. Ducks, Geese, and other fowl frequent our treatment ponds and we shudder to think what non ...e one all hyped up on meth would do. Furthermore, if it made it far enough we could create meth- gators in Shoal Creek and the Tennessee River down in North Alabama. They've had enough methed up animals the past few weeks without our help. So, if you need to dispose of your drugs just give us a call and we will make sure they are disposed of in the proper way. Also, if you have any info on drug use and abuse in our community contact us on here or at city hall and we will see what we can do! Edit/addition: We feel the need to mention that "drugs" also includes prescription pills. These medications can be disposed of at City Hall in a designated disposal container in the lobby.

Spread

After the police department's post, other outlets picked up the story as though the department was legimately warning against meth gators. Alabama outlet AL.com[2] posted about the warning of "meth gators." USA Today also picked up the story.[3] Twitter users also began joking about the idea of meth gators. Clothing brand Rotowear[4] unveiled a tee shirt design for "Alabama Meth Gator" (shown below, left). Twitter user @jamesonroper[5] joked that "Alabama Meth Gators" would make for a good college sports mascot (shown below, right).


Follow RotoWear @RotoWear Replying to @aldotcom available only at: rotowear.com/products/alaba... LABAH WEAR aro ALARANA AULYAR BETS WEAS 4:21 PM 15 Jul 2019 MET 43 Jameson Roper Follow @jamesonroper Replying to @aldotcom @grahamrowell this should be the new mascot for a university down there. think of how terrifying it would be to play the south alabama meth gators. big advantage 10:59 AM-15 Jul 2019

On July 19th, the Loretto Police Department posted clarifying that meth gators are not real,[6] writing "Let us be perfectly clear: the meth gator was a humorous illustration used to highlight the dangers of flushing drugs and other substances down your toilet. Alas, the meth-gator is not real. Let’s say that again: THE METH GATOR IS NOT (at this time) REAL. We’ve had to explain that to our cousins across the pond twice." They went on to say that they would take the opportunity afforded by the attention they received to create a website through which they'd sell merchandise based on some of their humorous posts, with the profits being donated to a local charity.


Loretto Police Department July 19 at 2:44 PM We would like to start by saying we NEVER expected the response we have gotten for the "meth-gator" post. Its reach has literally been worldwide with stories being posted/printed all over the U.S., England, China, Australia, Russia, and New Zealand. Chief has had interviews with NBC, the BBC, Fox News, Inside Edition, and a host of local and regional television and radio stations. This is simply amazing. He has also fielded a few calls from professionals fearing we actually had a meth influenced gator in our custody. Let us be perfectly clear: the meth gator was a humorous illustration used to highlight the dangers of flushing drugs and other substances down your toilet. Alas, the meth-gator is not real. Let's say that again: THE METH GATOR IS NOT (at this time) REAL. We've had to explain that to our cousins across the pond twice. Since we've had such a huge response to this we have decided to try and steer this fame towards some good for our community. Very soon we hope to launch a website where you can purchase shirts and possibly other apparel with the department logo and themes from some of our more humorous posts. We are thinking Officer Rocket Launcher, the meth-gator, and Linda just to name a few. With any new venture we would like to ask for your, those who follow us and enjoy our posts, ideas. Just drop a picture or quote in the comments below or send us a private message with your idea, and who knows, you may see it on somebody in Walmart one day. All proceeds/profit/money left after operating the website and sending out the merchandise will be donated to a local charity that deals directly with children affected by drug use. If we are successful enough, we hope to branch out and support school programs as well. With your help we can do this and make a difference in a child's life and our community. Please like and share this post so we can achieve maximum coverage. Thank you, Ofc. Thomas P.S. This is being structured in such a way that no on-duty officer will have time taken away from their duties or responsibilities. All professional services are being donated.

The update was covered by Twitter Moments[7] and USA Today.[8]

Search Interest

External References

[1] Facebook – Loretto Police Department

[2] AL.com – Flushing drugs could create Alabama ‘meth-gators’

[3] USA Today – Methed-up gators and ducks and geese Tennessee police warn against flushing drugs down the toilet

[4] Twitter – @Rotowear

[5] Twitter – @jamesonroper

[6] Facebook – Loretto Police Department

[7] Twitter Moments – Tennessee police confirm that 'meth-gator' post was all a joke

[8] USA Today – 'Meth-gators' aren't real, Tennessee police say after viral post. At least not 'at this time'

Recent Videos

There are no videos currently available.

Recent Images 5 total

     

Top Comments

Kommando_Kaijin
Delete
Sensitive
Kommando_Kaijin

Meth-Gators would actually be weaker than normal Gators due to the Meth causing the loss of most of their teeth.

Worst case scenario one of the bites your leg hard enough to break the bone but doesn't actually puncture the skin because The amount of Meth consumed is inversely proportional to the amount of teeth the subject has.

+19
Reply

+ Add a Comment

Comments (6)


Display Comments

Add a Comment


Sup! You must login or signup first!