Marriott Hotel Worker Opens Drawer To Find Bible - And 5ft Long Python
In an unpleasant surprise, staff at Marriott Residence Inn opened a hotel room drawer to find a Bible sharing the space with a snake, news reports say.
The staff worker was cleaning out a room at the Marriott Residence Inn on Plantation Street and was surprised to find a juvenile python that measured five feet long, the Worcester Telegram reported. Worcester animal control was quickly summoned to handle the situation.
According to Mass Live, Worcester animal control officer Patrick Cherry said the hotel staff were still shaken when they arrived. With the staff unsure if the snake was poisonous or not, Cherry decided to don gloves and carried safety gear to help catch the drawer-dwelling serpent.
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When he opened the drawer, however, Cherry found the snake to be quite docile and put it right into a bag. Animal control then quickly transported the snake to Central Mass. Aquatics, a tropical fish store.
Rod Dzivasen, general manager of the pet supply shop, said the snake was in perfect condition, noting that while it might be two years old, it's "not an old snake." What bothers Dzivasen is the fact that the snake was found in the hotel drawer.
"Why on earth they had him in a hotel room is beyond me," Dzivasen said.
Cherry said they tried to locate the owner but failed to do so as the previous guest who is believed to have left the snake in the drawer checked out the night before. Cherry said the guest used a fake name and then disappeared.
Richard Wilson, owner of Central Mass. Aquatics, told the Boston Globe that he couldn't understand why anyone would leave a snake in a hotel room. Wilson added that the snake, identified as a golden reticulated python, is a "high-end specialty snake" native to Asia that can grow to 30 feet.
They can fetch up to $2,000 each but as the snake is illegal without a permit in Massachusetts, Wilson decided to "give it a good home" at the New England Reptile Distributors in New Hampshire, where it can be kept properly.
Cherry advises any hotel guests who stumble upon a snake to "close the door as quickly as you can and go to management."
