Editors note:
In a very odd case a snake is being blamed for killing two young children.
Constrictors normally only kill for food, and they are rarely predatory unless they are hungry. The official version is reported below but I would not be at all surprised if there is more to this case than meets the eye.
Video: ViralMedia24
Police in eastern Canada have launched a criminal investigation after a python apparently escaped from a pet shop and killed two children by asphyxiating them in their sleep.
The two boys – Noah Barthe, five, and his brother Connor, seven – were at a sleepover at their best friend’s apartment in the town of Campbellton when it is believed they were attacked by the snake.
It is understood the animal had escaped from the Reptile Ocean pet shop, which specialises in exotic pets and is run by family friend Jean-Claude Savoie, located on the ground floor of the building.
The boys were sleeping in the living room of the residence on Pleasant Street when they were apparently attacked by the snake early on Monday morning. Police were called to the scene at 6.30am local time.
Alain Tremblay from the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) told Canadian news station CBC News that officers were in the first stage of a criminal investigation.
He said: “I can tell you it’s a criminal investigation right now to determine if any criminal act is responsible for the death of the two boys.” (source)
Corporal Tremblay confirmed that the snake involved is an African rock python, as long as 4.5 metres and weighing about 45kg. The animals are non-venomous and usually kill by constricting victims
