MORNING CALL (Allentown, Pennsylvania) 16 September 04 Alligator, cobra removed from apartment - Resident could face charges; animals taken to humane society. (Angela Pomponio)
For Allentown police, Tuesday's shift resembled a show on the television network Animal Planet, not an episode of the reality series ''Cops.''
Acting on an anonymous tip late Tuesday afternoon, officers discovered an alligator between 4 and 5 feet long being kept in the bathtub of a Fourth Street apartment, just a room away from a venomous cobra.
Also in the second-floor apartment at 450 N. Fourth St.: two children, ages 4 and 6, a Chihuahua and a ferret.
''There must be a trend of buying these exotic pets and trying to keep them …'' police Assistant Chief Ronald Manescu said. ''This is the second or third snake we've removed from homes in the past couple of months.''
The 2-foot-long cobra seemed unfazed as it was carried outside in its aquarium, police said. The alligator, however, put up more of a fight as officers clamped down on his jaw and taped it shut, according to Gary Ritter, who oversees animal control for the city.
''The alligator was understandably a little agitated to be moved. That was to be expected,'' Ritter said. ''He snapped a couple of times.''
Police didn't know why the tenant, 25-year-old Jason Soto, allegedly kept the snake and alligator as pets, and no one answered the door Wednesday at the home.
According to police, Soto lives at the home with another man and the man's two young children. The man's name was not available Wednesday.
Ritter said the case is being investigated, and Soto could face charges and fines for violating a city ordinance that prohibits residents from keeping exotic and dangerous animals. Meanwhile, police referred the case to county Children and Youth Services.
''The fact that the cobra was venomous was of great concern, and certainly, alligators get large and get very dangerous,'' Ritter said.
Soto also has been ordered to find another home for his ferret, an animal also banned within city limits, Ritter said.
The alligator and snake were being kept Wednesday at the Lehigh County Humane Society, and a local reptile expert was expected to temporarily care for them.
Ritter said they'll probably go to a zoo or another facility.
''They won't be in Allentown, anyway,'' he said.
Alligator, cobra removed from apartment