Delta police search for slippery fugitive ‘Gypsy’ the ball python

Delta police are on the hunt for an unusually slippery fugitive: a six-foot ball python named ‘Gypsy’ that slithered away last Saturday.

Police say they don’t know exactly where the snake escaped, only that it got loose in a farmer’s field somewhere in Ladner.

Delta police spokesperson Cris Leykauf said that despite the snake’s size, it is not believed to be dangerous.

“It’s not a venomous snake, and apparently these are popular pets among snake owners because they have more of a docile temperament, they curl up into a ball when frightened, which is why they are known as ball pythons,” she said.

“This snake would primarily eat things like rats, mice and birds.”

The Conservation Officers Service reported the snake missing to Delta police on Friday, Leykauf said.

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However, the wily serpent is already known to police.

Leykauf said officers had a “cooperative and polite” encounter with the snake and its owner back on June 20.

“A man was reported to be sleeping outside a Walmart in the Tsawwassen Commons area, and when police dealt with the man on that occasion the man and snake relocated to their nearby minivan and went on their way after that,” she said.

Leykauf said the exact circumstances of how Gypsy got into a farmer’s field remain unknown.

Gypsy is described as six-feet long, eight-inches thick and a dark caramel colour.

Anyone who spots the snake is asked to call 911 with its location.