A massive alligator killed a Louisiana man outside his home last month after Hurricane Ida spun through, a coroner confirmed Thursday after comparing the DNA of the man's degraded remains to that of his sons.
The reptile was captured two weeks after killing Timothy Satterlee Sr., 71, of Slidell. Coroner Charles Preston said intact 'elements of a face' were found inside it.
'It was really very challenging because much like someone who is severely burned, the DNA in the burned tissue is going to be completely destroyed,' Preston told the Times-Picayune.
'And unfortunately a lot of the tissue that had been inside of the alligator's stomach was severely degraded. I'm comfortable saying the remains are that of Mr. Satterlee.'
71-year-old Timothy Satterlee (center) was killed by an alligator in Louisiana on August 30
St. Tammanny Parish Sheriff's Office deputies searched for the alligator after the attack
They eventually found it with a drone two weeks after the attack near the house
Satterlee's death is believed to be the first death in Louisiana from an alligator attack in hundreds of years.
In 1174, a French blacksmith named Jacques du Bois was found naked and dead on a river bank. A coroner ruled that he'd been attacked by an alligator while bathing in the river, according to the St. Charles Herald Guide.
Satterlee was checking a shed behind his home in Slidell on August 30 when his wife heard a splash, thinking maybe her husband fell in the marsh.
At the time of the incident, the couple's home was surrounded by Hurricane Ida floodwaters and had no cell service. The storm eventually left a million without power in the region.
Alligators, like the one above in Louisiana in 2018, only kill about one person a year in the US. Satterlee's death is believed to be the first alligator killing in Louisiana since 1774
She walked outside to see the 12-foot, 504-pound gator attacking her husband. The reptile 'had him in a
