Idiots get them as pets when they are small. These things get big quick. Because they are idiots, they don’t learn how to handle them. So they let them go. Other idiots decide they want to breed them and sell the skins to shoe companies and make a quick buck. It takes work and effort to be successful. The quick buck doens’t come. They let them go. Therefore big problem. First ones were brought in by Gangsta’s, flamboyant tonsil hockey players, and the like. Given the right environment, Florida certainly provides it, they will flourish in the wild. They are flourishing.
Seems like FL should have laws banning the sale/ownership of such non-native animals.
Or maybe they already do but can’t enforce them?