A New Port Richey man is worried his 15-foot pet snake might try to make a meal out of whoever might have stolen him.
Charles Pierce of Jacqueline Drive said his 200-pound Burmese python, Hugo, has been missing from his home since Saturday.
Pierce said he came home to find the snake's box had been propped open, and the screen and chicken wire enclosing his back porch had been pulled back.
Pierce thinks it is more likely someone stole Hugo, rather than that he escaped.
"I just can't see him having done all this damage to get out," Pierce said. "I mean, this requires hands."
The snake, worth as much as $12,000, is very aggressive and could easily eat a cat, a dog or a small child, Pierce said.
"My main concern is if some kid took him saying, "Oh, look at this cool snake,' " he said, "and somebody becomes his lunch."
Pierce said he kept Hugo for breeding because he has a rare genetic distinction called piebald, or white splotches along the skin.
Since taking him on as a pet five years ago, Hugo has grown accustomed to him, Pierce said. But the snake did attack him several years ago.
"He wrapped me once when he was a little over 10 feet long," Pierce said. "He got around my chest, and my arms were free. I'm lucky he didn't get around my neck."
