Police got quite the shock after getting a call reporting a “Komodo dragon” living inside a Bay Area home.
Officers from the Alameda Police Department and members of animal control responded to the scene and discovered that the reptile had been abandoned there by former tenants, police said.
The large reptile was left behind by former tenants. Alameda Police Department
Ornate Nile Monitor found in East Bay home (left) and a Komodo dragon lizard, the larger member of the same Monitor family (right). Alameda Police Department / Getty Images
A photo released by police showed the crafty creature hanging from a set of venetian blinds inside the home.
Upon further inspection, investigators found the scaly suspect was actually a young Ornate Nile Monitor, which can grow to 7 feet in length.
Police jumped into action after getting a call reporting a “Komodo dragon” in a Bay Area home. Alameda Police Department
“They have powerful bites, strong claws, and forceful tails that can cause injuries,” the police department said. “For these reasons, Ornate Nile Monitors are not suitable for beginner reptile keepers and are never appropriate pets for children.”
The large lizard is now living at Berkely’s East Bay Vivarium, police said.
Wayward reptiles are no strangers to Golden State, with workers at In-N-Out Burger in the Los Angeles area spotting a massive python slithering around the fast-food joint in October of last year.
The non-venomous snake made its blood-curdling cameo in the drive-through, leading to its eventual capture.
More recently, bears have been invading homes in Lake Tahoe, where an all-volunteer brigade has been doing up to eight bruin extractions a day.
Last week, the group chased a 550-pound black bear out from under a Los Angeles house in just 20 minutes. The bear had been camped underneath the home for a month, evading traps and other strategies from local officials.