Posted on: Thursday, May 5, 2005
Snake found in luggage bound for California
By Curtis Lum
Advertiser Staff Writer
Security screeners at the Honolulu Airport have found many unusual items during routine baggage searches, but yesterday's discovery of a living, slithering snake was a first.
Richard Ambo • The Honolulu Advertiser It is illegal to possess a snake in Hawai'i.
"We're searching for prohibitive items, as well as explosive devices, and the screener was very surprised that there was a live snake in the checked bag," said Sidney Hayakawa, head of federal security at Honolulu International Airport.
The screener called a supervisor, who in turn notified the state Department of Agriculture and state sheriffs at about 11 a.m.
The owner of the bag was paged over the airport's intercom and she returned to the TSA checkpoint, where she was questioned. She told officials that she packed her own bag, but did not know how the snake got into her luggage, Hayakawa said.
The state allows people to turn in illegal pets, including snakes, without fear of prosecution under an amnesty program. For information, call the Pest Hotline at 586-PEST (7378). Agriculture officials issued a $5,000 citation to Filion for illegally transporting, possessing and harboring a snake. She also faces a possible misdemeanor federal charge of illegally transporting a reptile, Hayakawa said.
She was allowed to board the plane and continue the flight.
Fear about damage to Hawai'i's native birds and biodiversity fuels a constant watch against snakes.
Especially troubling is the possibility that brown tree snakes, which have decimated Guam's native bird population, could spread to Hawai'i. Because of the snake, nine of 11 native Guam bird species are extinct.
Domingo Cravalho, plant quarantine specialist, said corn snakes, which are not venomous, are popular in the pet trade because they come in many colors and are easy to maintain. He said an albino corn snake is considered a "designer snake" because it's bred for its specific color.
Corn snakes, which can grow to 6 feet, are docile and pose little danger to people. In June 2002, a foot-long ball python was found in a Honolulu airport "amnesty bin," which allows passengers a last chance to discard illegal items.
"This is a reverse, which is quite unusual. It's the first case that I can think of where the animal was caught on the outbound," Cravalho said. "We usually catch them as they're coming in."
He added that the snake would have had no problem surviving the five-hour flight to Sacramento.
"It could have survived in that bag in a one-week flight," Cravalho said. "Snakes are not like mammals where they have to consume meals practically every day. They can go one week to a month without eating."
Cravalho urged residents to turn in illegal animals under the department's Amnesty Program.
Reach Curtis Lum at 525-8025 or culum@honoluluadvertiser.com.
A Transportation Security Administration screener conducting a search of a checked bag discovered a 3-foot, orange-and-white albino corn snake. The snake was in a bag that belonged to a 32-year-old woman who was headed to Sacramento, Calif., on a Hawaiian Airlines flight.
Officials say the woman who was cited yesterday told them she didn't know how the corn snake got into her bag.
The woman was identified as Analiza Filion of Waipahu.
Illegal pets?
