Everand Logo

Welcome to Everand!

  • Los Angeles Times

    Rattlesnake vendor ensnared in wildlife trafficking sting at exotic reptile show

    David Sneddon's trouble with federal agents started at a booth where he was selling pythons, red-tailed boas and rattlesnakes at Repticon, a reptile trade show in South Carolina. A customer inspecting his Mojave sidewinders took Sneddon's phone number. Sneddon had no idea the man was an undercover informant for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. For the next 18 months, federal agents ...
    by Michael Finnegan, Los Angeles Times May 23, 2023 4 minutes
    Photos filed in court by prosecutors show rattlesnakes in boxes that they say David Sneddon falsely labeled to disguise illegal rattlesnake shipments.

    David Sneddon's trouble with federal agents started at a booth where he was selling pythons, red-tailed boas and rattlesnakes at Repticon, a reptile trade show in South Carolina.

    A customer inspecting his Mojave sidewinders took Sneddon's phone number. Sneddon had no idea the man was an undercover informant for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

    For the next 18 months, federal agents surreptitiously recorded all of the informant's phone conversations with Sneddon and intercepted all of their texts as they arranged purchases of albino snakes, scorpions, lizards and other creatures.

    Sneddon, 44, a truck driver who lives in Los Angeles and Las Vegas, pleaded guilty in October to felony wildlife trafficking, admitting

    You’re reading a preview, subscribe to read more.

    More from Los Angeles Times

    Los Angeles Times4 min read
    Tyler Glasnow Dominates And Max Muncy Hits Three Home Runs In Dodgers’ Blowout Win
    LOS ANGELES — As much as it pained Kyle Snyder to see Tyler Glasnow traded from Tampa Bay to the Los Angeles Dodgers last December, the Rays pitching coach predicted the move would benefit the 6-foot-8 right-hander from Santa Clarita. “I genuinely th
    Los Angeles Times2 min read
    California Roads Damaged By Storms Could Get Help With Gov. Newsom's Emergency Declaration
    LOS ANGELES — Gov. Gavin Newsom proclaimed a state of emergency Friday to help fund badly needed repairs of roads battered during this year's storms, including scenic Topanga Canyon Boulevard that was blocked by millions of tons of debris. The govern
    Los Angeles Times2 min read
    Bodies Found In Baja California During Search For Missing Tourists, Mexican Officials Say
    MEXICO CITY — Mexican officials said three bodies have been found in the same remote stretch of Baja California where two Australian brothers and their American friend went missing last week while on a surf trip. The bodies were recovered south of th

    Related Books & Audiobooks