Florida authorities have captured and euthanized a large alligator that was seen roaming around an inhabited area carrying a human torso in its jaws.

As reported by the TMZ.com portal, the event occurred this Friday in the town of Largo, near Tampa, where the reptile was walking through the neighborhood, scaring residents.

The first neighbor to see it was a man who was on his way to a job interview when he saw the reptile, more than four meters long, biting what appeared to be part of a mannequin.

But the man, named Jamarcus Bullard, looked closer and discovered that it could actually be a human torso in the jaws of the enormous alligator.

Bullard reported the gruesome discovery to the fire department, which responded quickly and upon arriving at the scene confirmed that they were human remains.

Pinellas County sheriff's deputies said additional remains of an unidentified adult were found near the area, with no one else injured. The alligator was later euthanized.