Watch: Australian man arrested after police find 26 snakes in his car
A man has been charged with animal cruelty after 26 snakes were found in his car by police.
Queensland Police uncovered 13 snakes dead, as another 13 roamed freely throughout the vehicle.
They intercepted the vehicle at 7pm on Saturday and spotted the animals among the rubbish and litter.
Officers seized the snakes – the majority of which were pythons – before the live ones were handed over to be treated by a local vet for dehydration and later moved to a wildlife rescue centre. The dead snakes were found in varying states of decomposition.
The man told officers he had owned one of the snakes for only two days, an animal which is protected under Australia’s Nature Conservation Act 1992. The ruling means it is illegal to kill, injure or take snakes from the wild.
The 22-year-old man was arrested in Moore Park Beach, around four hours north of Brisbane on Australia’s east coast, and is due to appear at Bundaberg Magistrates Court in April on 26 counts of animal cruelty.
