Hunter Dustin Bockman shoots record 727 Ib alligator in Mississippi

ALLIGATOR hunters in Mississippi have pulled in the state’s heaviest ever catch – a 727-lb, 13-foot beast.

The gator was caught three days into the start of the alligator hunting season, and just an hour after another hunter had just broken the record with a gator weighing in at 502 lbs.

The record-breaking catch was made by local man Dustin Brockman and his friends.

Mr Brockman told NBC news it took all night to land the catch. He said he chased the gator for two hours until he shot it with a crossbow. After another two hours they were able to fire a shot gun in to the animal.

"We killed the alligator at 4 am," he said. "We waited until 6.30 (am) before I called three or four more guys to help us load it into the boat."

Mr Brockman said he planned to use the creature’s skin to make a gun strap and a picture frame. He said he would eat the meat after providing some to his friends.

An hour before Mr Brockman’s epic haul a hunting party led by Beth Trammell of Madison, Mississippi, hooked a 502-lbs gator.  

Dustin Bockman, from Vicksburg, Mississippi with his catch. Picture: Mississippi Department of Wildlife, Fisheries, and Parks