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The snakes were found Tuesday, June 4, when the Department of Environmental Conservation along with DEC police and members of the Bureau of Environmental Crimes Investigation unit executed a search warrant at a residence in the city of Newburgh after being alerted by Jacobi Medical Center in the Bronx that a man had been bitten by a poisonous snake, said Maureen Wren, with the DEC.
The unidentified man was treated at the hospital Sunday, June 2, after being bitten by a venomous Asian pit viper he owned. He received five doses of antivenom and was released on Monday.
At his residence, ECOs discovered 157 snakes in the basement. The man did not have a license to possess any of the snakes, DEC said.
"Venomous snakes are illegal to possess in the state of New York without a license and are only licensed for educational or exhibition purposes," they added.
Bronx Zoo staff members were on site Tuesday assisting ECOs inventory and remove the snakes from the home, and the snakes will be kept at the zoo in the interim.
More information will be released when it becomes available as the case remains under investigation.
If you witness an environmental crime or believe a violation of environmental law occurred, please call the DEC Division of Law Enforcement hotline at 1-844-332-3267.
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