MIAMI INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT, FLA. (WSVN) - TSA officers are no strangers to thwarting smuggling attempts in luggage, but they may not have expected this slithery surprise.
Agents at Miami International Airport discovered a python wrapped in nylon material and concealed inside a computer tower on Sunday, the TSA announced. The equipment was found in a checked bag headed for a flight to Barbados.
“This organic mass was not explosive, but it shows you can’t hide any threat from us,” wrote TSA spokesperson Sari Koshetz on Twitter.
U.S. Fish and Wildlife took possession of the snake, and the TSA said the passenger will be fined.
“Neither the passenger nor the snake flew to Barbados yesterday,” Koshetz said.
Though the discovery was not an imminent danger, the agency said wildlife pose a very real threat on aircraft, noting animals of many species have been known to escape and chew through wires.
The TSA identified the reptile as a Ball or Royal Python, which is considered a non-native species by the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission.
“While they can be confused with Burmese pythons, adult ball pythons rarely grow longer than 4 feet,” the FWC said on its website.
TSA Officers at MIA intercepted this Ball or Royal Python artfully concealed inside a hard drive. This organic mass was not explosive, but it shows you can’t hide any threat from us. pic.twitter.com/mmCIQmOKxQ
— TSA_Gulf (@TSA_Gulf) July 9, 2018
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