30 years ago - "Monster of Loch Neuss" - Hunt for alligator Sammy
He was one of the most famous stars of the notorious Dormagen Sommerloch: Kaiman Sammy. The search for the escaped alligator caused an international sensation 30 years ago. Sammy escaped when his owner took him on a swimming outing to a gravel pit lake near Dormagen on the Lower Rhine. For days, the police, fire department, and media were in a frenzy, and the entire nation was captivated.
After Sammy's escape on July 10, 1994, authorities called for a wild game hunt. Due to fear of the 80-centimeter long reptile with razor-sharp teeth, the idyllic gravel pit lake was closed for several days that hot summer. There were reports of a "Beast from the Gravel Pit" and the "Monster of Loch Neuss." Photographers and camera crews from home and abroad set up positions at the lake's edge. Zoologists and other "experts" - from Kenyan crocodile hunters to clairvoyants - offered advice.
Sammy was not fooled by tricks
Despite attempts with snare traps, nets, or rifles, all attempts to capture the Brillenkaiman on land or in the water initially failed. Tricks like a crocodile call imitator and a bait made of bloody beef filet did not work on Sammy. Firefighters in inflatable boats came within two meters of the escapee, but he simply disappeared again.
The supposedly tame Kaiman, who had previously lived in the apartment of his then 21-year-old owner, seemed to increasingly enjoy his freedom and savored his "swimming vacation" in the lake, which offered numerous hiding places with sandy beaches and dense waterfront vegetation.
Three nights after Sammy's escape, there was the news: The reptile had been shot. "With 99-percent certainty, one of the three shots hit him," the police reported. But they were far off: A few hours later, Sammy was spotted alive.
A diver as a hero
As more and more voices called for mercy for Sammy, a fan club was founded, and animal welfare organizations and scientists from all over Germany demanded that his life be spared. Even the North Rhine-Westphalia Interior Minister Herbert Schnoor (SPD) intervened and demanded: "Sammy must live!"
Five days later, Sammy's escape took a happy ending: A sports diver discovered the Kaiman about one meter under the water surface and caught him with bare hands.
The exhausted Sammy recovered first at the Cologne Zoo and later found exile at the Falkenstein Animal Park in Saxony. Sammy's owner fought in various courts for his friend and was allowed to have him back temporarily, but the man failed before the Düsseldorf Higher Regional Court in 1998.
Skippy, Bruno, and Yvonne
The animal keepers in Saxony considered Sammy, who had been cuddled as a small alligator hatchling in the bed of his former owner, increasingly dangerous. In 2006, the approximately 1.5-meter long reptile was given away "for safety reasons." Until his death in 2013, Sammy lived alone in a cage at an alligator farm in Hesse.
Animal stars frequently make headlines and stir emotions - sometimes for weeks on end. In 2015, Kangaroo Skippy hopped merrily through the Sauerland region, Cow Yvonne successfully escaped the butcher in 2011, Swan Petra fell in love with a swan pedal boat on the Aasee in Münster, and Brown Bear Bruno made it into the "New York Times" by wandering through the Bavarian forests in 2006.
- Despite the international manhunt for Kaiman Sammy, the Lower Rhine's notorious summer slump continued in Germany's North Rhine-Westphalia, with the incident serving as a temporary distraction.
- The police, fire department, and the media in Dormagen were in a state of chaos following the escape of the 80-centimeter long reptile, leading to miscellaneous reports of monsters in the region.
- The alleged escape of the Caiman sparked fears among residents, with some even comparing it to the mythical 'Beast from the Gravel Pit' or the 'Monster of Loch Neuss'.
- During the summer slump, stories of hunts for the reptile made headlines, with local animal enthusiasts and international experts offering advice on how to capture the Brillenkaiman.
- On July 15, four days after Sammy's escape, a sports diver bravely ventured into the lake, successfully locating the Caiman just one meter below the surface and administering a humane capture.
- The fire department, police, and local animal welfare organizations were relieved by the capture of the reptile, which prompted sympathy from Germans, resulting in the formation of a fan club advocating for the animal's welfare.
- In the aftermath of the incident, Sammy made a new home at the Falkenstein Animal Park in Saxony, joining other notorious animal stars like Kangaroo Skippy, Cow Yvonne, Swan Petra, and Brown Bear Bruno, whose escapes occasionally make headlines across Germany.
