Press Item: Route 1 pet zoo loses more animals in Sat theft

[ Follow Ups ] [ Post Followup ] [ The Iguana Forum ]

Posted by Desiree on July 03, 2001 at 19:01:20:

Route 1 pet zoo loses more animals in Saturday theft

By JULIE KIRKWOOD

News staff

PEABODY -- Thunder crashed overhead Saturday night as burglars ran out of the Curious Creatures Kidzoo with three lizards and a 10-foot python in their arms.

A manager arrived Sunday morning to find a skylight smashed and the four animals missing. This is the second time in three months a nighttime burglar has stolen animals from the Route 1 exotic pet zoo.

"The animals they stole aren't super valuable," says Suzanne Kosch, who owns the zoo with her husband, Dean. "It's pretty depressing, though."

The Kosches think the two thefts are unrelated.

They never found the burglar who broke in through a bathroom window April 29 and stole a 4-foot-long rainbow boa constrictor and two lizards, but a private investigator has found evidence that he believes points to an ex-employee.

Police are tracking different suspects in this second theft. They found a driver's license in the parking lot near where the burglar appears to have climbed to the roof.

The Kosches think the burglars struck around 7 p.m. Saturday when the power went out in the thunderstorm. Curious Creatures added more alarm zones to its security system and installed motion detectors after the first theft, but the blackout deactivated their system.

Tracks on the roof suggest one person climbed up, crawled on his belly to a domed skylight and used a railroad tie lying next to it to smash through. He may have let accomplices in or made several trips into the zoo himself.

They think the burglar had a flashlight because he chose a skylight directly above a metal cage he could climb onto.

He probably didn't realize the flimsy metal cage was the only thing separating him from small crocodiles and alligators lurking in the water below. The crocodiles and alligators are among the only dangerous animals in the zoo, and surely would have attacked him out of hunger and irritation.

"If he had jumped down with enough force, he would have broken right through," Suzanne says. "I wish he did."

But the burglar made it to the floor safely. He walked through the dark main room of the zoo, where spiny iguanas, wide-eyed birds and tree frogs might have brushed against him as they climbed through the dangling foliage.

The crash would have startled the animals, Suzanne says, and set off a flurry of activity. "The birds would have been screaming their heads off."

The burglar didn't bother to take any of the exotic birds, which would have fetched the most money from a dealer, and he ignored the zoo office, where valuables might have been kept.

Instead he walked directly into the lizard and spider room, which is a narrow corridor with discarded snake skins strung along one wall and cages on the other.

The burglar unlocked two cages and took a black and gold lizard, named Poe, and a bearded dragon, named Stewie.

Then he walked to the zoo's storage room and hospital where the big snakes are kept. He opened a cage with three tangled snakes, each one longer than a human is tall, and pulled out the 25- to 30-pound albino python snake, named Sunshine.

"Not just anybody is going to open this cage and pull a snake out," says Dean, watching the smooth, muscular bodies of the remaining snakes writhe behind the glass. In addition to being fearless, the burglars had to be strong.

Suzanne needs the help of another employee to lift Buttercup, a 12-foot albino python, off the floor and into the cage it shared with Sunshine. The yellow and white snakes don't have venom, but they can strike at or squeeze a human in self-defense.

Possibly the biggest insult to the zoo was when the Kosches found the burglar's fourth victim, an iguana named Red. Dean rescued the orange lizard from a family six years ago when they couldn't get him to eat. The zoo hand-feeds him to keep him alive.

"That iguana will kick and scratch and whip his tail," Suzanne says. She hopes Red put up a good fight when he was stolen.

As Suzanne and Dean gave interviews to television crews yesterday, the Peabody Police Department called them with regular updates on the investigation.

The Kosches have offered a reward for the safe return of all four animals.

"I just wish these talking birds would talk," Suzanne says, "and tell us who it was."

Route 1 pet zoo loses more animals in Sat theft

Follow Ups:

Post a Followup

Name:
E-Mail:

Subject:

Comments:
: Route 1 pet zoo loses more animals in Saturday theft : By JULIE KIRKWOOD : News staff : PEABODY -- Thunder crashed overhead Saturday night as burglars ran out of the Curious Creatures Kidzoo with three lizards and a 10-foot python in their arms. : A manager arrived Sunday morning to find a skylight smashed and the four animals missing. This is the second time in three months a nighttime burglar has stolen animals from the Route 1 exotic pet zoo. : "The animals they stole aren't super valuable," says Suzanne Kosch, who owns the zoo with her husband, Dean. "It's pretty depressing, though." : The Kosches think the two thefts are unrelated. : They never found the burglar who broke in through a bathroom window April 29 and stole a 4-foot-long rainbow boa constrictor and two lizards, but a private investigator has found evidence that he believes points to an ex-employee. : Police are tracking different suspects in this second theft. They found a driver's license in the parking lot near where the burglar appears to have climbed to the roof. : The Kosches think the burglars struck around 7 p.m. Saturday when the power went out in the thunderstorm. Curious Creatures added more alarm zones to its security system and installed motion detectors after the first theft, but the blackout deactivated their system. : Tracks on the roof suggest one person climbed up, crawled on his belly to a domed skylight and used a railroad tie lying next to it to smash through. He may have let accomplices in or made several trips into the zoo himself. : They think the burglar had a flashlight because he chose a skylight directly above a metal cage he could climb onto. : He probably didn't realize the flimsy metal cage was the only thing separating him from small crocodiles and alligators lurking in the water below. The crocodiles and alligators are among the only dangerous animals in the zoo, and surely would have attacked him out of hunger and irritation. : "If he had jumped down with enough force, he would have broken right through," Suzanne says. "I wish he did." : But the burglar made it to the floor safely. He walked through the dark main room of the zoo, where spiny iguanas, wide-eyed birds and tree frogs might have brushed against him as they climbed through the dangling foliage. : The crash would have startled the animals, Suzanne says, and set off a flurry of activity. "The birds would have been screaming their heads off." : The burglar didn't bother to take any of the exotic birds, which would have fetched the most money from a dealer, and he ignored the zoo office, where valuables might have been kept. : Instead he walked directly into the lizard and spider room, which is a narrow corridor with discarded snake skins strung along one wall and cages on the other. : The burglar unlocked two cages and took a black and gold lizard, named Poe, and a bearded dragon, named Stewie. : Then he walked to the zoo's storage room and hospital where the big snakes are kept. He opened a cage with three tangled snakes, each one longer than a human is tall, and pulled out the 25- to 30-pound albino python snake, named Sunshine. : "Not just anybody is going to open this cage and pull a snake out," says Dean, watching the smooth, muscular bodies of the remaining snakes writhe behind the glass. In addition to being fearless, the burglars had to be strong. : Suzanne needs the help of another employee to lift Buttercup, a 12-foot albino python, off the floor and into the cage it shared with Sunshine. The yellow and white snakes don't have venom, but they can strike at or squeeze a human in self-defense. : Possibly the biggest insult to the zoo was when the Kosches found the burglar's fourth victim, an iguana named Red. Dean rescued the orange lizard from a family six years ago when they couldn't get him to eat. The zoo hand-feeds him to keep him alive. : "That iguana will kick and scratch and whip his tail," Suzanne says. She hopes Red put up a good fight when he was stolen. : As Suzanne and Dean gave interviews to television crews yesterday, the Peabody Police Department called them with regular updates on the investigation. : The Kosches have offered a reward for the safe return of all four animals. : "I just wish these talking birds would talk," Suzanne says, "and tell us who it was."

Optional Link URL:
Link Title:
Optional Image URL:

[ Follow Ups ] [ Post Followup ] [ The Iguana Forum ]