Crime & Safety

Area Homeowners Find 5-Foot Snake on Their Deck

Paul Kiolbasa stepped out onto his deck at about 5 a.m. Wednesday, Stillwater Police Officer Ryan Mitchell said. It was still dark out, so he thought he saw a he saw a wet towel, robe or a stick. It was none of the above.

Article by Shawn Hogendorf

Paul and Camille Kiolbasa woke up Wednesday morning to a five-foot snake lounging on the deck of their Stillwater home.

Paul Kiolbasa said he stepped out onto his deck at about 5:15 a.m. Wednesday, Aug. 21, and as tt was still dark out, so he thought he saw a wet towel, robe or a stick. When Kiolbasa bent down to touch it, he knew it was none of the above.

"I touched it, but I couldn't figure out what it was," Kiolbasa said. "I went to turn on the light, looked outside and was just shocked. I said, 'Holy cow, look at that.'"

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Kiolbasa went inside to tell his wife Camille and two children Eddy and Annie what he found—a boa constrictor.

They couldn't believe it, Kiolbasa said.

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"I said: 'Believe me or not, there is a very large snake on the deck.'"

The snake never seemed threatened or scared, Kiolbasa said, and in fact was mild-mannered.

Kiolbasa said the snake wasn't really going anywhere, and he wanted his kids to see it, so he waited about two hours to call police.

"The kids were just floored," Kiolbasa said. "My daughter, Annie, thought it was beautiful, and my son, Eddie, wanted to keep it."

Kiolbasa said he has no idea where the snake came from.

When Stillwater police officer Ryan Mitchell said arrived, he said the snake had coiled up around the railing and lattice of the deck.

Police contacted the state Department of Natural Resources, which sent Sarah Richard of the Minnesota Herpetological Society to the scene. Richard was able to put the boa constrictor in a cotton bag and took it away.

“It’s likely someone didn’t want the snake and let it loose,” Mitchell said.

The Minnesota Herpetological Society will hold the snake until Sept. 6 to see if the owner claims it, Mitchell said. After that the group will put it up for adoption.

"It was quite the experience," Kiolbasa said. "Unbelievable."



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