In an unusual traffic stop near Cypress, Texas—just 30 miles northwest of Houston—deputies discovered a bizarre mix of contraband and unexpected passengers. According to a Dec. 27 news release by Harris County Constable Precinct 4, a driver with an open felony warrant was pulled over on a freeway. What followed was far from routine.
During the search of the vehicle, deputies uncovered a loaded rifle-caliber pistol, illegal narcotics, and, astonishingly, three exotic snakes casually slithering in the back seat. Photos revealed the reptiles to be ball pythons, a species native to Africa and known for their docile nature.
“This is definitely not your typical traffic stop,” the precinct noted in their Facebook post. The discovery sparked amused reactions online, with one commenter joking, “OMG I would have to quit my police job and run for the moon,” while another speculated, “He thought nobody would check the vehicle with snakes in it.”
The driver was promptly arrested on charges of unlawful possession of a weapon and illegal narcotics. As for the pythons, deputies handed them over to a family member at the scene.
Ball pythons, though nonvenomous and widely kept as pets, aren’t exactly what one expects to find roaming freely in a car during a traffic stop. This peculiar arrest left authorities—and the online community—both baffled and amused.