"As soon as I gave my opinion that this is wrong, he should have never been taken from the wild and put in this cage' the guys gave me dirty looks"

...I own snakes and do NOT believe in taking them from the wild and forcing captivity on them..

"I'm going to figure out some way to get him released, even if I have to take him and say I left the lid open by accident"

Sounds potentially morally superior to me. I think maybe that's why the guys gave you dirty looks?

Sorry I offended you. But my advice to take care of him yourself was also given by someone else. You get more flys with honey...