TSA Discovers Snake Inside External Hard Drive

People go to great lengths to try smuggling goods on to an aircraft, with the number one method for gadgets being to strap them to your body. But if the thing you are trying to smuggle is alive, then hiding it inside some other object makes more sense.

As the Miami Herald reports, the latest failed smuggling attempt involved a python and an external hard drive. On Sunday, Transportation Security Administration (TSA) officers at Miami International Airport discovered a nylon bag hidden inside an external hard drive enclosure. Opening up the bag revealed a nonvenomous constrictor ball python.

The unusual object concealed within the hard drive was spotted during screening of checked baggage for a flight heading to Barbados. As it was an organic mass, the TSA had to call in a bomb expert to investigate exactly what was inside the drive and then the bag. Thankfully it wasn't an explosive device and the snake was still alive.

The snake was taken away by the US Fish and Wildlife Services thus avoiding the stressful journey in a cargo hold and hopefully headed for a better life within the US. As you'd expect, the passenger who checked the bag also didn't make it on to the flight. She has been fined for attempting to smuggle an exotic animal out of the country.

For the TSA, it's just another day of attempted smuggling. In a recent blog post the Administration revealed that between June 18-24, a total of 92 firearms were discovered in carry-on bags, 80 of which were loaded and 29 of those had a round chambered. Finding a snake instead of a firearm at least adds some variety to the job.