THE MIRROR (London, UK) 29 June 11 Snake breeder dead after being bitten by one of his own snakes

A snake breeder has died after being bitten by one of his venomous reptiles.

Police are investigating the death of the man in his 40s in Eastwood, Nottingham, today.

He is believed to be Luke Yeomans, a snake breeder who was due to open the King Cobra Sanctuary breeding colony to the public this weekend.

Nottinghamshire Police said officers were called at around 2pm to a property in Brookhill Leys Road, near Eastwood, where the man had suffered a suspected heart attack.

It is believed he had received a bite from a venomous snake, a spokeswoman said, and said he was pronounced dead at the scene.

She said the snake has been contained and there is no danger to the public.

"The RSPCA, Health and Safety Executive and Broxtowe Borough Council have been informed of the incident," police said.

"Nottinghamshire Police will investigate the circumstances surrounding the death in conjunction with the appropriate agency and will liaise with the coroner's office."

A spokeswoman for the Health and Safety Executive said they were aware of the incident and were making preliminary inquiries.

The King Cobra Sanctuary, based at Brookhill Leys Farm, offers people the chance to see the king cobras in the breeding colony.

Writing on its website previously, Mr Yeomans said: "The King Cobra Sanctuary was born from my lifelong love for this amazing snake species and my concerns that it could eventually disappear from the wild.

"Until mankind changes the way he treats the natural world, a living 'Ark' is required for the survival of many animal species.

"The King Cobra (Ophiophagus hannah), an end of the line apex predator, is certainly one of them.

"With 30 years experience of the King Cobra, myself and my daughter Nicole - now in our third year of the project, will maintain a breeding colony of this large and dangerous, but also misunderstood venomous snake."

Mr Yeomans recently told the BBC he was keeping the colony of adult and juvenile king cobras in a compound behind his house as a "safety net" to protect the species from possible extinction.

He said he started the project in 2008 in reaction to the depletion of the snake's natural habitat in forests of south-east Asia and India, and planned to breed another 100 snakes by the end of 2011.

He told the BBC: "People do say that I am mad but I say it's better than people saying you're bad.

"I think everything I am doing is good."
Snake breeder dead after being bitten by one of his own snakes

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