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Authorities Find 100 Snakes in Dead Man’s House in Maryland

Authorities found a man dead in his Maryland home which he shared with roughly 100 venomous and nonvenomous snakes. On Wednesday, the man’s neighbor found him lying unconscious on the floor in his home in Pomfret, about 30 miles south of Washington D.C. and promptly called for help.

Usually, when there are dozens of deadly reptiles surrounding a body, the animals tend to be the reason for the untimely death. Thankfully, though, this wasn’t the case for the Maryland native. As it turned out, the man was actually an experienced caretaker of the 124 snakes. Some of the reptiles were actually illegal in the state. Other types of snakes in the home included cobras, black mambas, pythons, and rattlesnakes, officials said.

Each scaly pet had its own enclosure and received sufficient food, water, and environmental conditions they needed. Animal officials on the scene even confirmed that the humidity and temperature of the enclosures closely matched the conditions of their natural habitats.

The situation was surprising, to say the least. It’s not often that someone owns more than a couple of pets, let alone over a hundred snakes.

“Our chief animal control officer said in his more than 30 years of experience, he had not encountered this kind of thing before,” said Jennifer Harris, a Charles County spokeswoman.

Officials Remove 124 Snakes from Maryland Residence

According to FOX 5 D.C., crews spent hours on Thursday removing the snakes from the home. They also enlisted the help of experts from Virginia and North Carolina to aid in the transport and care of venomous species. Once all reptiles were out of the home, officials assured the public that no snake had escaped during the process, and there was no threat to the surrounding neighborhood.

“They were all very properly secured. They were racked. He did not keep a lot of furniture inside the home, so there was no place if a snake, for example, were to escape, where it could hide or harm anybody,” Harris added, according to WRC-TV.

Neighbors found the news of the snakes just as shocking as the Charles County officials. Apparently, none of them knew that the man even owned any reptiles. For all they knew, he was a “great guy.” 

“Neighbors really take care of each other, help each other out, and I was asked by neighbors to share that the resident was a great guy, really kept an eye on each other,” said Doria Fleisher, a Charles County community engagement coordinator and neighbor. “Everybody helped with each other’s houses out of town. Nobody had any idea that this was going to be an issue. They were not aware that there were snakes in the house.”

The man’s cause of death is still unknown. However, officials reported that there were no “obvious signs” of foul play.