“I didn’t know if it was venomous, if it was going to attack me,” Eric Johnson said of the encounter
NEED TO KNOW
- Arizona man Eric Johnson found a giant lizard swimming in his backyard pool
- Experts later said the reptile was likely an Asian water monitor — the second-largest lizard species in the world after the Komodo dragon
- Wildlife experts believe the massive lizard was likely an escaped pet, noting that Asian water monitors are not native to Arizona and can grow longer than seven feet
A man in Arizona was in shock when he discovered a giant lizard in his backyard.
Peoria resident Eric Johnson was doing yardwork when he suddenly heard a loud splash coming from his swimming pool, according to FOX 10 Phoenix.
“It almost sounded like a baseball jumping in the pool,” Johnson told the outlet, adding that was when he saw the creature.
“I didn’t know if it was venomous, if it was going to attack me,” Johnson said. “I figured it was some type of, you know, half-land, half-water animal because he looked pretty comfortable.”…