Whoever broke into a well-concealed room - and left more valuable snakes behind - swiped more trouble than value, zoo keepers say.
By ABBIE VANSICKLE
Published June 29, 2004
TAMPA - Lowry Park Zoo keepers opened their snake room Monday morning and expected to find the zoo's rattlesnake, king snake and copperheads all tucked safely in their cages.
Instead, the locks on three of the cages and a skylight in the room were broken. One of the two copperheads, the male, was missing.
Zoo officials, police and reptile store owners are all puzzled by the burglary. Whoever took the copperhead left behind more valuable snakes and the other copperhead, a female.
"Whoever took it is not very smart," said Joe Fauci, owner of Southeast Reptile Exchange, 4805 N West Shore Blvd. "They took a snake with about a $20 or $30 wholesale value."
Fauci, who carries 50 to 100 types of snakes in his store and ships snakes to retailers around the country, said copperheads are common and not particularly valuable, and can't be sold without a state permit. He also said police have notified him and other local venomous snake vendors to look out for the missing snake.
It appears that whoever took the snake knew the building well, said zoo spokeswoman Heather Sitton. The snake room is not easy to find, she said. Plus, the zoo has 24-hour security cameras and guards. It appears that someone climbed onto the building's roof and shattered the skylight to get into the room, Tampa police said.
Police have no suspects in the theft, which occurred between 5:30 p.m. Sunday and 6:30 a.m. Monday, said Tampa police spokesman Joe Durkin.
Zoo officials said they are concerned for both the snake and its captor.
When the 2 1/2-foot-long snake arrived at the zoo in 1996, it was unhealthy and ate very little. Zoo keepers have spent years nursing it back to health.
"We honestly have no idea why someone would want to take an animal from the zoo," Sitton said. "It's frustrating to have someone come in and have all of that work go for nothing."
They are also concerned for the thief, who might not know that the copperhead, typically found in northern Florida, is venomous. Zoo officials said the snake's bite is painful and can cause tissue damage and possibly death.
Anyone with information about the theft can contact the Tampa Police Department at (813) 231-6130 or the Crime Stoppers hotline toll-free at 1-800-873-8477.
