Slippery theft confounds cops
2005-12-27 23:01
The Hague - Dutch police are mystified how thieves got away with 24 boa constrictors from a suburban zoo in the administrative capital, says a spokesperson on Tuesday.
The slippery group comprising two adult snakes stretching to 2.5m and 22 youngsters up to about 50cm disappeared sometime on Christmas Eve.
Wim Hoonhout of Holland police said: "Investigators don't understand how the thieves were able to grab all these reptiles."
The owner of the Sauria Foundation terrarium in suburban Wateringen discovered the theft on Christmas day.
Police launched an appeal for information and said anonymity of tip-offs would be safeguarded.
Non-venomous boa constrictors, which killed their prey by encircling and crushing them, were native to Latin America.
- AFP