Kobe was reported missing on Saturday, May 25, by Columbia County Sheriff David P. Bartlett on Facebook.
The Sheriff's said that deputies were investigating a burglary of a residence on Cemetery Road in the Town of New Lebanon in which an alligator had been stolen.
The notice for the missing alligator said he was 6-foot-long with a scar on face, the tip of his tail was missing, and he had a hole in one of the back web part of a foot, not sure which side.
Kobe's owner, the sheriff said, is both licensed and permitted to possess the alligator.
Deputies and the owner searched for the missing gator and a $2,000 reward was even offered.
But it seems as if Kobe was next door all along. A neighbor found him "resting" in their yard on Sunday, June 2, and safely returned him to his owner.
Click here to follow Daily Voice Mahopac and receive free news updates.