Man flees long arm of the law... and falls straight into the jaws of an alligator

• Florida man bitten on face and arm by alligator after he ran from police during a routine traffic stop
  
• Police find Bryan Zuniga, 20, in hospital hours later

By Daily Mail Reporter

PUBLISHED: 17:01 EST, 9 May 2013 | UPDATED: 17:05 EST, 9 May 2013

Snapped up: An alligator bitemark can be seen on Bryan Zuniga's chin in his police mug shot. The 20-year-old also appeared to have his arm in a sling

A Florida man ran from the police and into the jaws of an alligator.

When Bryan Zuniga, 20, was pulled over by police in the Tampa Bay area in the early hours of Thursday he ran from the car, Pinellas County Sheriff's Office said.

The Tampa Bay area man was found later at a hospital, where he was being treated for alligator bites.

He told police that he was attacked by the reptile near a water treatment plant.

The alligator left multiple puncture wounds to Zuniga's face, arm and armpit.

Police had asked Zuniga, from Pinellas Park, to pull over for failing to maintain a single lane, at 2.50am.

When his car stopped however, he jumped out of the passenger door, broke through a fence and disappeared.

He has been charged with fleeing police, driving with a suspended or revoked license and resisting an officer without violence.

The once endangered alligator has been making a comeback in recent years and can be spotted in most stretches of Florida water.

The animals can grow up to 15ft in length and weigh up to 1,000lb.

Danger: The once endangered alligator is making a comeback in Florida, where about seven attacks on people a year take place (stock image)

They have become so common in Pinellas county that residents have access to a hotline to report any alligators that stray on to their property.

Last year there were seven unprovoked alligator attacks on people in Florida, according to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission.

Zuniga told police that he was bitten in the face and arm during the attack.

He was found in St Petersburg General Hospital, Florida, several hours after running from police.

Cristen Rensel, the sheriff's spokeswoman, told the Tampa Bay Times: 'He just said he was attacked by the alligator. It's still unclear how he got [to the hospital].'