KSDK (St Louis, Missouri) 09 December 09 University of Arkansas students try to sell alligator, rattle snake out of dorm room

It's a real-life "Animal House".

Two students at the University of Arkansas were caught with more than ten reptiles in their dorm room, including an alligator and a rattle snake.

University of Arkansas police found the scaly critters in a dorm room Thursday night.

"The students were collecting them and trying to sell them on Craigslist," Lt. Gary Craine explained.

The room belonging to Jacob Miller and Michael Robbins, both freshman at UA, had become the home to several reptiles including a gopher snake, six pythons, three chameleons, one American alligator, and a diamondback rattle snake - all of which were obtained through Craigslist.

"We just went on there and got them and were looking to make a little money off of them," Robbins said.

Robbins says the plan was to keep the reptiles in the dorm for just a couple of weeks until Christmas break, but their luck ran out.

On top of breaking the University's housing policy, no pets in dorm rooms, Robbins and Miller were cited by the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission for possession with intent to sell the alligator and rattle snake without a license - a $1,240 fine.

"We know what we did was wrong, and we're not looking for a lot of sympathy, but probation would be a lot better than being kicked out," Robbins said.

Both Miller and Robbins are facing the potential of getting kicked off campus when they go to their U of A judicial hearing, which is scheduled for some time this week.
Students try to sell alligator, rattle snake out of dorm room

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• MS Press: Students try to sell alligator - W von Papineäu, Wed Dec 23 13:26:46 2009