Missing Texas woman’s body found inside alligator’s jaw in bayou

HOUSTON – The remains of a missing woman were found in the jaws of an alligator in the Horsepen Bayou.

That bayou is in Clear Lake, about 30 minutes southeast of Houston.

Searchers were looking for the woman Tuesday morning when they made the discovery.

• Marsh madness: Texas alligators stir in mating season frenzy

A Houston police officer shot and killed the alligator to prevent it from doing any more damage to the woman’s remains.

Then a dive team recovered the woman’s body and the dead alligator from the bayou.

What investigators don’t know is if the woman died first and was found by the alligator or if she was killed by the alligator.

They’re waiting on autopsy results on the cause of death.

Police say the woman is believed to have been in her 60s.

March through May is mating season for Texas alligators. The Houston area has been hit hard by a series of storms and intense flooding this Spring, which can often displace reptiles and other creatures.

RELATED: Texas officer attacked by 10-foot-alligator on highway

Earlier this month in Cleveland, Texas about 45 minutes north of Houston, a police officer was attacked by a 10-foot-alligator in the middle of a busy highway as he tried to help muzzle it. Sgt. David Edwards had surgery after the gator bit his arm and hand, crushing bones and gnashing skin.

Trinity County, which still has flood waters from late April, has had numerous reports of nuisance alligators, according to the sheriff.