Ian Curtis - Stolen African House Snakes

I really hope the OP weighs in. I know it's been a while, but there's one thing that concerns me more than her loss. It is clear she will not get satisfied. My concern is regarding whether or not she lost interest in this hobby. It would be a win for the rest of the herp community to have her in it. Ian will never be a respected member in the community, which is a win for the rest of us. The long term suffering belongs to Ian.

I know this is an old thread, but I had to chime in.

Sarah, you maintained a professional and adult demeanor through this entire heart breaking experience. Despite dealing with childish, unprofessional, shady response after response. I've seen people lose their temper over having a parking spot stolen and here you kept a level head through having years of your hard work stolen from you. It doesn't make the loss any easier but karma is karma and I truly believe people like Ian get what's coming to them in the long run. I just hope people like you get rewarded conversely. I truly hope life/karma compensates you for having to put up with this. Good luck with everything and, Lucille, if that fund to buy Sarah some baby house snakes re-emerges I am in!

Originally Posted by AllisonLeigh

I know this is an old thread, but I had to chime in.

Sarah, you maintained a professional and adult demeanor through this entire heart breaking experience. Despite dealing with childish, unprofessional, shady response after response. I've seen people lose their temper over having a parking spot stolen and here you kept a level head through having years of your hard work stolen from you. It doesn't make the loss any easier but karma is karma and I truly believe people like Ian get what's coming to them in the long run. I just hope people like you get rewarded conversely. I truly hope life/karma compensates you for having to put up with this. Good luck with everything and, Lucille, if that fund to buy Sarah some baby house snakes re-emerges I am in!

I think a lot of people on this thread, including me, believe in karma. It just sucks when someone's beloved animals have to get caught in the middle of it. I found it especially creepy that Ian, in trying his damnedest to dig up something negative about Sarah, went with the cheap shot in bringing up a COMPLETELY unrelated and personal topic that involved her ex boyfriend. smh.

It's a shame Sarah never got her snakes back, very frustrating! It is interesting to see the epilogue, so to speak, of what happened and how they went about going after this guy with legal action. Unfortunately it didn't produce the snakes, but hopefully it will cause him problems. I think he probably sold the snakes immediately and then was covering that up all along. I do think his actions will continue to haunt him; he deserves them to!

So, its been a couple years since the last update on this post.

Again, I want to thank everyone who asked the right questions, had my back, and supported me through this ordeal.

The last couple of years have afforded me very little time to consider my house snakes, as we sold our house, purchased a 9000 sq ft abandoned warehouse, and transformed it into our home. We also had a baby. Things have been busy, lol. Recently, however, some very good friends of mine surprised me with a juvenile house snake. This has been a wonderful gift, reminding me how much I loved my AHS and their beautiful shining scales and friendly attitudes. So as such, it has led me into remembering my lost collection...and I thought to look up this thread and update you all.

Ian Curtis still refuses to comment on anything to do with me or my snakes. When approached about it by anyone, he clams up and walks away. He only just started attending the local reptile shows again, but scurries out the back door if me and my husband walk in. No one has been able to drag a word out of him, far as I know. He's still the VP of the KHS, too. He is also evidently still working as an Animal Control Officer, and intending to become an actual police officer.

I did hear an awful rumor, from some one who really has no reason to lie about this, but its been the only snippet of information to come my way in years...Word was that Ian had loaned my snakes to another local keeper who had some...well, less than ethical husbandry practices. They had some sort of deal that Ian went back on, or didn't do his part. I'm not sure what fell apart in their agreement, or what their agreement even was. Anyway, to "get back" at Ian, this keeper supposedly killed my snakes on the hood of his vehicle one by one and made a spectacle out of it. (He didn't know they were my snakes, I'm sure he thought they were Ian's.) Again, this is just a rumor. The individual who told me has no reason to lie, I'm not friendly with any of the people involved nor do I have any business arrangements or anything of the sort with them that he was likely trying to ruin. He just heard the story from another keeper who, again, didn't really have any reason to lie, but was close with Ian and likely just wanted to spread some juicy gossip. There is still very little I can do to ferret out the truth from them. Its not like Ian is going to tell me, nor would the other keeper likely fess up to doing something so horrible. But, this would explain why Ian never had any answers concerning my snakes. This has been the only indication as to what may have happened to my snakes in the past 4 years, and it wasn't very encouraging, nor does it lead me in any direction that could result in a resolution. But I suppose it is worth mentioning...

Thanks again. I should really get some pictures of my wee little house snake to share. She's het for albino, so I'll be keeping my eye out for an albino male...

Sarah, what a horrendous rumor, if it is true I feel so sorry for those snakes.
If it is true of course it would be good to have the name of the of the snake killer, to avoid him and do our part to see that we send no critters into his care.

Without knowing whether or not it's true, I can't give up the snake killer's identity in good conscience.

Originally Posted by SincereArtisan

Without knowing whether or not it's true, I can't give up the snake killer's identity in good conscience.

Should anyone with first hand knowledge get in touch with you, you might encourage them to tell their story here.

Originally Posted by SincereArtisan

He is also evidently still working as an Animal Control Officer, and intending to become an actual police officer.

I've had friends become cops and the background check they undergo is pretty intense. The investigators not only interview the applicant's references, but they also branch out to friends and friends of friends. The herp world is pretty small and at some point the investigator will likely be told this story, or it will pop up in Google search (yes, believe it or not, they use Google) that Ian Curtis effectively stole your snakes.