NORTH BAY NUGGET (Ontario) 14 January 04 Snake lover placed on probation (Maria Calabrese)
A “snake enthusiast” now living in North Bay bought himself a black-market birthday gift that he stowed in a coffin which doubled as a coffee table.
While living in Guelph, David Deforest paid $50 for a four-foot bald ball python, pinched from the Grand River Conservation Authority in nearby Cambridge.
Deforest, 33, was put on probation for a year after pleading guilty in a North Bay court Tuesday to possession of stolen property and an assault against an ex-partner who is now in jail for armed robbery.
Guelph Police Service officers spotted the stolen snake while executing a Controlled Drugs and Substances Act search warrant at the residence, recovering the reptile in the crypt.
Court heard Deforest saw two teenagers with the snake, and they agreed to swap it for the cash — far short of what a python that size and species is worth.
Deforest is banned from having any weapons for 10 years.
Snake lover placed on probation