Attempt to ship reptiles leads to arrest

A post on reptibid said it was DHL:
http://www.reptileauctions.com/blog-...4&topicid=1003

http://www.pet-abuse.com/cases/8063/SC/US/
A man packed three snakes into a box and tried to ship them out of a Rock Hill parcel service March 23 afternoon, according to a Rock Hill Police report. He was arrested on charges of animal cruelty.

The store employee became suspicious when the man, Robert Keziah, 23, asked whether he could ship live animals through the parcel service, at 2210 India Hook Road, shortly after 2 p.m. The employee told him he couldn't and asked Keziah what was in the box, the report stated. Keziah said the box contained cups and left. The report didn't say where he planned to ship the snakes. Under company policy, the employee opened the box and saw two pillowcases, which contained three live snakes - one pillowcase had a 7-foot python, and the other had two copperheads, according to the report.

The python "was so cold that it took approximately 20 minutes before it would pick its head up," the report stated. "The way the snakes were being shipped in the box and the conditions they went through were cruel and inhuman."

The snakes were valued at $1,300.

I wonder if they actually were copperheads or if the paper got it wrong?

Under company policy they opened private mail? I would like to read where in their policies it says that they can do such a thing.

#3 on this list:

http://www.dhl-usa.com/resources/Ter...of_Service.pdf

Snakes expressly prohibited on this list:

http://www.dhl-usa.com/resources/Pro...ommodities.pdf


They are a private company, they can set their own rules, and in the post 911 era it would be logical that they be allowed to open packages to see what they are putting on their aircrat.

Jon,

You are right and they have spelled out on their TOS that they can open your package.

Thanks!

So I guess that's it for shipping live animals with DHL.

I'm going to be getting a Savannah Monitor through DHL probably tomorrow... The person I am getting it from has already set it all up... Maybe this guy did something different?

Originally Posted by The BoidSmith

Under company policy they opened private mail? I would like to read where in their policies it says that they can do such a thing.

I asked the same question on another thread about this same situation.
There has been more than one account by the media as to how it all happened.

Clay posted the articles in the HERPS IN THE NEWS forum some time ago.

A Rock Hill man was arrested after trying to mail a 7-foot python and two copperhead snakes, according to a Rock Hill police department report.

Robert Keziah, 23, of 829 Lucas St., Apt. B, was charged with cruelty to animals after trying to ship the snakes from the Post & Parcel Plus at India Hook Road, the report said.

Keziah came in to the store Thursday afternoon and said he needed to overnight some cups and saucers to a guest who had left them at his house, said Nicholas Marthers, 25, the store's owner.

"He was stuttering the whole time," Marthers said.

On his way out, Keziah asked if the store could ship live animals, Marthers said.

Marthers sensed something suspicious, he said, so he opened the package.

Inside were two pillow cases, one green and one white. Marthers saw snakes inside them.

"I thought, maybe he's sending something he killed to a taxidermist," Marthers said. "That's when I called the police and said, 'I'm not messing with this.'"

The police came and figured out there were live snakes inside the pillow cases.

"The white bag was moving a little," Marthers said. "Then they picked up the green bag and you could see the snakes' scales through the bag."

The police, with the clerk's help, got Keziah to come back to the store, where they arrested him.

One of the snakes was so cold it took 20 minutes for it to lift its head, the report stated.

The York County Forensics Services Unit will hold the python and the two copperheads until Keziah's court date, the report stated. S.C. Division of Natural Resources officers will help investigate.

"So I guess that's it for shipping live animals with DHL"

Lots of us HAD permission to ship HARMLESS herps with DHL - I had a letter from the president of Airborne since 1996. But since they became DHL, they started weeding us out whenever they noticed they we were still there. So I luckily got set up with FedEx and was ready to switch when they finally noticed that live animals were still being shipped from our branch a few months ago, and put a stop to it. Since I had already been using FedEx for some shipments (where there was no morning DHL service), the transfer was seemless and easy. Although FedEx is more expensive, SO FAR (knock on wood), they have been a lot more dependable than DHL.

I would suggest everyone who still uses DHL should get certified with FedEx so you are ready to switch on a moment's notice (since a moment is all of the notice you are likely to get!)

I'm going to be getting a Savannah Monitor through DHL probably tomorrow... The person I am getting it from has already set it all up... Maybe this guy did something different?

Lizards, tortoises, frogs, insects and fish are allowed as "restricted commodities", read:
http://www.dhl-usa.com/resources/Pro...ommodities.pdf