Man returns stolen snake to Portland pet store

Updated (1/14 11am) — The two-foot python stolen from an Oregon pet shop on Friday slithered back to its owner on Wednesday.

Richard Bjugan, owner of A to Z Pets in Portland, says a man walked into the shop on Wednesday with a bucket and said “surprise- here’s your snake.”

He told the store he bought the snake from another man. But after seeing the news coverage he decided to bring it back to the store.

Bjugan says social media was behind the snake’s return and thanks facebook users and numerous calls and emails.

Police still don’t have a suspect in the case and no arrests have been made.

Portland, Ore. — (KGW) Police in Portland, Oregon are looking for a man who walked into A to Z Pets Friday afternoon and stole a snake by stuffing it down his pants.

The man, wearing a ball cap pulled low, walked into the store about 2:00 pm, made his way to the back of the store to the snake area, stuck his hand in the tank, and took out a black pastel ball python. He can be seen on surveillance video stuffing the python into his pants, and walks out.

Store co-owner and manager Christin Bjugan says the snake is about two feet long, and was being sold for $200. She says this type of snake isn’t aggressive, but on that day, the man got lucky.

“It was close to feeding day. The snakes are very hungry, I know when I go back there on a Saturday or Sunday even, the snakes are up against the glass looking for food. They are ready to eat. By Saturday. So he made it in the nick of time,” she said. “They like dark warm places so he was probably very comfortable where he was at.”