The tiny alligator that was spotted in the Charles River in Boston has been found safe. The alligator was first seen last weekend by Trevor Rochelle who recorded video of it wading back into the river.

"Believe me, it was real. I am not pulling anyone's leg," he told WBZ-TV Tuesday.

A spokesperson for animal control in Boston said they went out to the river Sunday but couldn't find the alligator.

On Wednesday, Joe Kenney of "Joe's Crazzy Critters" took a shot at tracking down the gator because he said it would be in danger in the colder weather.

"We think about Florida with alligators, Florida, Georgia, the bayous. Not the Charles River in downtown Boston," Kenney told WBZ-TV. 

Alligator rescued from Charles River

Kenney said said he was at the Charles River for only about 15 minutes before he found the gator. "I had brought a little folding net with me, and I was able to just scoop it up," he said. 

Kenney assumes the gator, now known as Charles, was an illegal pet that someone dumped. Because of that, the animal can't safely return to the wild. 

"It's not a risk to people. It was a small alligator. Definitely not something that would hurt a person. But for the animal's welfare there's no way it would have survived," Kenney said. 

After a visit to the vet Thursday, Charles was treated to tilapia for lunch. Kenney, who is also the animal control officer in Hanson, Massachusetts, is hoping the alligator will become a part of Joe's Crazzy Critters, an educational reptile show he started back in 2005.

"As time goes by and he gets a little bigger, I'll probably try to find an adequate sanctuary that will be able to take him, down the road," Kenney said. "It's a very, very rare occurrence. It's not common to see alligators anywhere really in New England, let alone in downtown Boston."