ATLANTA — Some of the deadliest snakes in the world are being trafficked throughout Georgia and Florida, according to the Georgia Department of Natural Resources.
Ga. DNR and the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission started an investigation in 2021 after receiving a tip about venomous snakes being sold on the black market.
After an undercover investigation that lasted more than a year, eight people have been arrested.
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Throughout the investigation, law enforcement found nearly 200 snakes made up of 24 different species from seven regions of the globe.
Some of those species found include the inland taipan, bushmaster, rhinoceros viper, African bush viper, Gaboon viper, green mamba, eyelash viper, multiple species of spitting cobra, forest cobra, puff adder and saw-scaled vipers.
DNR officials say there is not any antivenom available for several of these species listed among the ten deadliest snake species in the world.
“The illegal sale, purchase and transporting of these regulated animals pose a significant public safety threat and threatens the long-term well-being of state wildlife populations. If these illegal and dangerous nonnative species were to escape, there is a possibility they could live and breed in the wild,” officials said in a news release on Thursday.
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Timothy James Gould, a 38-year-old from Central City, Pennsylvania, was arrested in Georgia. His exact charges are unclear, but officials say he is being charged with several felonies and misdemeanors. The other seven suspects were arrested in Florida.
They say Gould is a “well-established wildlife transporter and is unpermitted in the state of Georgia and Florida for any captive wildlife, let alone venomous reptiles.”
When he was arrested, Gould had 27 exotic venomous snakes with him.
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