'He was scared of the snake': Ball python saves owner from attempted robbery at gunpoint
SOUTHEAST HOUSTON, TEXAS: A Houston woman nearly got herself killed in an attempt to sell her ball python. Explaining the horrifying ordeal Ariel Giron said, she put her pet ball python, nicknamed Chompers up for sale for $200 on OfferUp last month. When Ariel met up with him her potential buyer at a disclosed location, she found herself being held at gunpoint by two other men who then tried to steal her snake. Authorities were able to apprehend one of the men but the other is still on the run, according to Houston police.
Ariel was contacted by a woman claiming to be interested in purchasing her python. They agreed to meet on Sunday, October 2, in a parking lot at an apartment complex in the 9400 block of Clearwood Street. When Ariel arrived at the location she was greeted by two children, one of whom only had a few bucks in his hand. The girl told Ariel that her brother would send the rest of the money, which was never part of the communicated plan, reported Click2Houston.
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“She asked me to remove him out of what he was in, and I was like, ‘Ok, that’s weird, maybe you want to touch him, maybe you want to just make sure he’s friendly,’” Ariel said.
But swiftly Ariel found herself surrounded by two men, one of whom had a gun and held it at gunpoint, demanding she gives them the snake. “It was straight to my temple,” she said. “Whenever I told him no, he was very stunned.”
(Click2Houston video screengrab)
Surveillance footage released by the Houston Police Department shows one of the men reaching out to the snake but he quickly jumps back after Chompers’ unfriendly attitude kicked in. “I’m guessing he was scared of the snake,” she said. “The snake kind of went by him and he jumped back.” Ariel believes Chompers saved her life that day because both men ran off at that point, and she was able to escape after tossing her snake to her friend in the front seat of her truck.
(Click2Houston video screengrab)
Furthermore, authorities have arrested 17-year-old Sean Flythe related to the incident and charged him with aggravated robbery with a deadly weapon earlier this week. Court documents claim he has a history of violence over the last month. The other suspect hadn’t been arrested as of Friday afternoon, November 4, according to Houston police. Ariel believes the armed robbery was a setup and claims Chompers has not been the same since. “Now I guess he’s staying with me,” she said, bursting into a crackle of laughter.