WATCH: North Carolina native finds alligator in attic during house inspection 

During a routine home examination this week, an alligator was discovered in the attic of a residence in Wilmington, North Carolina. The three-story new home at Echo Farms was under examination by Dean Brown, a code enforcement officer for New Hanover County.

He went there to review the construction work, and while checking the attic, Dean noticed a large figure near the air conditioner. At first, he thought it was a big stuffed animal that someone had put there as a joke. However, the figure started moving.

Dean told FOX 35:

"I thought it was a stuffed animal that someone threw up there as a joke. So I just went about my inspection.”

He then noticed that the seemingly stuffed animal was breathing, and it turned out to be an alligator. Dean said he was about 2 feet away from placing his foot on its head.

Dean Brown said that he has been working in the home inspection field since 1995, and though he has encountered several crazy situations, finding a gator in the attic was a first for him.

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The alligator captured from the North Carolina home is 8 foot long

Dean told the outlet that the gator seemed asleep until he cast a flashlight on its face, prompting the animal to open its eyes. He took a few pictures of the gator and immediately called one of his colleagues to tell him about the intruder. He also notified the construction workers at the site and asked them to evacuate the house.

Dean said he made phone calls and told people around him, but nobody believed him at first and only laughed at him, thinking he was crazy. Eventually, one person got around and took Dean’s alert seriously. He climbed up the stairs to inspect the situation himself and came face-to-face with the 8-foot-long reptile.

Dean said:

"When he realized I was not joking, he was able to communicate with the rest of the workers on site to leave."

Alligator found in an attic in a house in North Carolina (Image via Twitter/@realTuckFrumper)

However, after seeing the animal with their own eyes, Dean and the crew contacted 911. Animal control officers reached the spot to capture the gator.

Brown said that on Monday morning when the builder arrived at the house, he realized that there was mud in the house but was not sure about its source. The builder called people in to clean the area and repaint some of it, after which the construction work continued for over 24 hours until Brown arrived at the house and discovered the alligator.

Dean Brown said that there were wetlands located behind the house. He conjectured that the alligator must have got in through one of the doors in the house that might have been left open. However, it is still a mystery to them as to how the animal climbed up and got into the attic.

The alligator might have gotten to the attic on its own (Image via Twitter/@DerektheCleric)

As no ladder could be lowered from the ceiling to gain access to the attic area, Brown explained that the house did not have a typical attic. Instead, it was more like a third floor that was unfinished but could be finished and enclosed. The attic-like area was reached by a full flight of steps.

Everyone present was quite shocked to learn that the alligator had to ascend several flights of steps to reach its hiding place.

Dean Brown said that he came across squirrels, snakes, rodents, and even a few alligators on outside premises during his nearly three-decade-long career in housing and construction. However, he never came across such a huge animal in such a close and elevated space. He said that he would never forget this experience.