Elliot Senseman, 27, died from anoxic brain injury due to asphyxiation by constriction after an 18-foot Boa constrictor-type snake wrapped itself around the man's neck inside his Church Street home in Fogelsville (Upper Macungie Township) on Wednesday, July 20, according to the Lehigh County Coroner's Office.
The snake completely cut off oxygen to Senseman's brain, the coroner's office said.
Officers arrived around 2:10 p.m. to find Senseman in cardiac arrest with the snake still wrapped around his neck, police said.
In response, cops shot and killed the massive reptile in the head, allowing them to pull the man to safety, they said.
Senseman was taken to Lehigh Valley Hospital-Cedar Crest, where he was pronounced dead on Sunday, July 24, the coroner's office said.
Meanwhile, tributes poured in on Facebook.
His death was ruled an accident.
Ownership of non-native reptiles and amphibians is not regulated by the state, according to the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission.
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