UK man fined for keeping a pet alligator named Cliff in his back garden

A UK man who kept a pet alligator over a metre long in his back garden has been fined by a magistrate for keeping the exotic pet.

Ashley Betts, 32, from Rotherham, pleaded guilty to breaching the Dangerous Wild Animals Act at Sheffield Magistrates Court on Wednesday.

According to the BBC, he kept the alligator, called Cliff, in a tank in his back garden for a year.

Betts was fined £333, ordered to pay a victim surcharge of £132 and £468 in costs.

The BBC has reported that Betts claimed he did not know he needed a special licence to keep exotic creatures, although he hoped to gain one to get Cliff back.

Police discovered the large reptile at his Rotherham home in July 2024. He reportedly kept Cliff in a special outhouse and tank before the alligator was confiscated.

The creature has been moved to a temporary home 70 miles away at a park in Liverpool.

Betts was not prosecuted for any cruelty to the alligator.

There was also “no suggestion” the animal was kept in poor conditions or in a way that presented a danger to others, the BBC reported.

When asked where he got the creature, Betts said he received it from a friend, according to the Sheffield Star.

While a four-foot alligator may stick out in the UK, male American alligators can grow up to 4.6 metres in length and weigh up to 500kg.

They typically live in marshes and swamps in south-eastern United States and north-eastern Mexico.

The Independent contacted Rotherham Metropolitan Borough Council for comment.