THE item left behind in a taxi looked like a
typical pouch for a pair of headphones - until it started to
move.
"I didn't know what was inside but
just screamed and tossed the pouch on the table," said
ComfortDelGro customer service officer Gilda Mendoza, who handles
items found in cabs.
Inside the grey velvet bag was a baby
ball python, which is usually found in Africa.
"Although it was small, it was moving
and I thought it would bite me," said Ms Mendoza, 41.
She had found the snake measuring half
an arm's length on Monday while logging items at the lost and found
department.
The pouch was tucked inside a paper
bag that also contained a camera data card and old receipts. Cabby
John Ng had found them in the boot of his taxi at 3am on Monday
morning.
He said he had not noticed anything
unusual when he dropped them off at the lost and found, and could
only recall that the passengers who last opened his boot were three
Chinese men in their 40s who appeared tipsy.
Yesterday, animal welfare group Animal
Concerns Research and Education Society took the snake back to its
shelter, which houses creatures rescued from the illegal wildlife
trade.
The python, estimated to cost more
than $1,000, is believed to have been smuggled into Singapore as an
illegal pet.
The Agri-Food and Veterinary Authority
said it will be looking into the case. In the last three years, it
has dealt with 19 cases of illegal trade or possession of live
snakes or their parts.
