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Maryland man found dead in home with more than 100 snakes

SNAKE HOUSE FOR WEB.jpg
Posted at 10:45 AM, Jan 21, 2022
and last updated 2022-01-21 10:45:52-05

CHARLES COUNTY, Md. — More than 100 snakes were removed from a Maryland home where a man was found dead on Wednesday.

The Charles County Sheriff's Office was called to the home on Raphael Drive in Pomfret for a welfare check. David Riston, 49, was found unconscious on the floor.

He was pronounced dead.

There were no apparent signs of foul play.

His body was transported to the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner in Baltimore for an autopsy.

The snakes were in tanks on racks in the home and were both venomous and non-venomous. Charles County Animal Control said they were all well-cared for.

Along with reptile experts from North Carolina and Virginia, they removed the snakes from home Thursday.

The head of Charles County Animal Control said in his 30 years, he's never seen anything like it.

It is illegal to own venomous snakes in Maryland.

Siobhan Garrett at WMAR first reported this story.