OUTLOOK (Alexander City, Alabama) 21 October 13 Snake! Police officers corral, remove snake from grounds of city hall (Austin Nelson)
Alexander City police got a 4-foot-6-inch perpetrator of the streets Friday during a police call that was a little different than most.
Sgt. Tomathon Tuck was in the parking lot of the police station Friday morning when a call came in from city hall.
When he arrived on the scene, he found the source of the trouble – a grey rat snake – coiled up near the glass door at the Calhoun Street entrance to city hall.
The snake was discovered loitering on the city hall steps by a citizen a few minutes earlier.
“He was in the corner trying to get through the glass,” Tuck said. “With the recent cool snap, I think the warm glass must have drawn him to it. “
Though the snake initially resisted arrest, it was eventually coaxed into police custody – into an empty trashcan.
“Once we got him in the trash can, we took him over to the grass near the fire department so we could get him by the tail and pick him up,” Tuck said. “He got calm where we could play with him. He was a very docile snake.”
Tuck said that he would have followed a different protocol had the snake been poisonous.
“A lot of people are scared of snakes, but a lot of snakes do more good than harm,” Tuck said. “This type of snake is what keeps rat and other rodent populations down.”
After taking several photos, authorities released the snake from police custody in an undisclosed wooded area.
Since the snake gave no official statement to police regarding the incident, police could only speculate why the serpent was attempting to enter city hall.
“Maybe he had to pay a water bill,” Tuck joked.
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