Florida man goes viral after successfully capturing alligator with trash can

A Florida man is taking over the internet after a video showing the courageous gent successfully luring a rogue gator into a trashcan went viral on social media.

It’s never a dull day in Florida, it seems.

The Florida Man meme is loath to die, as is Florida Man, himself, if a viral video involving an alligator is anything to go by.

On September 29, Florida’s Abdul Gene Malik stormed social media after a video of his front yard exploits took the net by storm. In the clip, Malik can be seen hefting a large, city-issued trash can toward a hissing alligator that looks none too happy about getting evicted from Malik’s property.

Florida man channels his inner Steve Irwin to successfully detain rogue gator

A crowd of onlookers can be heard heckling the gator and cheering Malik on. At first, he seemed to have a difficult time trapping the reptile into the receptacle… that is, until Malik let the can’s lid slip, which donked the animal on its head.

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This must have been the variable needed to get the large lizard to retreat into the trash can, protesting and thrashing all the while, until the lid closed behind it. Malik hefted the can upright with great effort to the applause of his neighbors, all while wearing socks and slides.

Like any superhero, Malik had the perfect one-liner for such an exploit, simply saying of his reptilian rescue: “I got kids to protect.”

The fate of viral Florida trashcan gator

Unfortunately for the hometown hero, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission stated that Malik was issued a written warning regarding the treatment of wildlife in residential areas. It seems that the man was unaware of Florida alligator laws at the time of his brave act, which he’d done as a temporary measure until law enforcement could do their thing with the animal.

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The alligator is reportedly alive and well, and has been released into a temporary retention pond until it can be relocated, according to reports from TMZ.

While Malik certainly came out of this situation looking like He-Man, it’s definitely better to leave these matters to professional wildlife rescuers… but there’s no doubt that his trash-can exploits have made him a local legend.