Body found guarded by gator

LAKELAND , Fla., May 18 (UPI) -- Authorities in Florida are investigating the death of a man who was found with a 7-foot female alligator guarding his body, officials said.

The armless body was discovered in Lakeland by two anglers early Saturday, the St. Petersburg (Fla.) Times reported Sunday. It was not immediately known if the alligator was responsible for the man's death.

Game officers shot the gator, cut open its stomach and found evidence it had been feeding on the body.

Officials say they were hoping to find the man's arms, which might help to identify him through fingerprints.

"Whether the alligator killed him and stashed him until it was time to eat or whether he fell out of a boat or had a heart attack we don't know," said wildlife commission spokesman Gary Morse.