A 26-YEAR-OLD South Morang man has been ordered to pay $10,000 to the court fund after pleading guilty for illegally dumping dead snakes at Mount Disappointment.
The man appeared in Heidelberg Magistrates Court last week on five charges after burying 32 dead carpet pythons in the Mount Disappointment State Forest.
He was found guilty without conviction and was placed on a good behaviour bond for two years.
The man had euthanised the pythons when some became infected with a disease and had a private wildlife licence to own them.
He buried the snakes in the State forest, where there was a risk of the disease spreading to native wildlife.
The man did not keep accurate records, which was a requirement of the conditions of his license and gave false or misleading information to an authorised officer when questioned about the snakes.
Conservation Regulator spokesperson Greg Chant said the case served as a reminder to keep accurate records when owning wildlife.
“Disposing of privately kept wildlife in this manner is reckless and represents a significant biosecurity risk for native wildlife and the community,” he said.
“The case is a reminder to people who own wildlife as pets that they need to keep accurate records of the animals in their care and take appropriate care with diseased or dead animals.”
