Long Island Man Could Lose All Of His More Than 800 Snakes

SHIRLEY, N.Y. (CBSNewYork/AP) -- A Long Island man will have to slither his way out of trouble with the law if he plans on keeping his stash of hundreds of snakes.

As WCBS 880's Sophia Hall reported, a Newsday report said Richard Parrinello of Shirley has until Monday to decide if he will apply for permits to run his snake business out of his two garages in his backyard.

Parrinello, 44, who worked for the Town of Brookhaven, was selling the slithery creatures while he was collecting disability from his job, officials said.

If he does not take action, the Town of Brookhaven will take action and try to remove all of Parrinello's more than 800 snakes.

Two Burmese pythons were already removed from the property because keeping them is illegal in New York State.

The rest of the snakes are legal to own, but authorities said Parrinello has violated town code by running a business out of his home and illegally converting his garage.

Police said the reptiles were discovered while authorities were investigating whether Parrinello, who is married with children, was violating Brookhaven town codes while out of work on disability, CBS 2's Dave Carlin reported.

The snakes were in good health, authorities said.

Wildlife officials told CBS 2 that the commercial value of the snakes was about $500,000.

So far, Parrinello has not commented to reporters.

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