Authorities in Maryland confirmed this week that the Pomfret resident who was found dead last January in his home with 124 snakes had actually died of a snake bite, reports said.
A concerned neighbor had called police to check on David Riston on Jan. 19 after he vanished. Officers then found Riston unresponsive and pronounced him dead at the scene.
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Police said that Riston kept 124 snakes in his home including rattlesnakes, cobras, black mambas, and even a 14-foot-long Burmese python.
Some of the reptiles were illegally owned although Riston had a valid captive reptile and amphibian permit at the time.
The 49-year-old’s cause of death was determined to be snake envenomation, the Maryland Department of Health said.
