MILLVILLE — Nothing good ever comes from seeing a snake in a tree.
Ask Adam. It can be good for a laugh, though.
A call to police at 12:08 p.m. Thursday sent Animal Control Officer
Anthony Cills to check on a report of a large snake in a tree behind the 100 block of North High Street.
The message left with police said the snake was sunbathing.
“I was asking area businesses if they’d seen it,” Cills said.
The snake turned out to be fake, but a realistic enough one for Cills and a police officer to approach cautiously.
The wind helped in the deception, causing the tail to flick, Cills said.
The snake was about 12 feet above ground, so Cills went after it from an overlooking apartment using snake tongs.
Cills said the apartment occupant said the snake had been there for a year.
After getting the tongs in place, it became clear the snake was not real.
Cills said he could hear what sounded like laughter at one point.
About eight years ago, someone called about a fake snake at the same property.
Thursday’s caller’s telephone number was blocked so police don’t know who phoned in the report.