CLUES SURFACE MAILING OF DEADLY SNAKE.Byline: - Jason Kandel Police have made progress in solving the mystery of the deadly South African spitting cobra spit·ting cobra n. See ringhals. Noun 1. spitting cobra - aggressive cobra widely distributed in Africa; rarely bites but spits venom that may cause blindness black-necked cobra, Naja nigricollis that was sent in the mail to a Winnetka songwriter, releasing a composite sketch Friday of a man suspected in the attack. The man depicted in the sketch took the boxed snake to Postnet, 9909 Topanga Canyon Blvd., in Chatsworth, on Feb. 20, and left the box there for mailing, said Los Angeles Los Angeles (lôs ăn`jələs, lŏs, ăn`jəlēz'), city (1990 pop. 3,485,398), seat of Los Angeles co., S Calif.; inc. 1850. Police Officer Renee Montoya. ``He had a lot of distinguishing characteristics, and it made it easy for employees to remember him,'' Montoya said. A Postnet employee remembered the man because of his height, his earrings and tattoos, said the owner, who declined to give his name. Police feel strongly that the man depicted in the composite is the one who mailed the snake. He was the only one who came into the store around the time the snake was mailed, police said. ``The box moved,'' said LAPD 1. LAPD - Link Access Procedure on the D channel. 2. LAPD - Los Angeles Police Department. Detective Rick Swanston, a West Valley Division detective supervisor. ``As soon as we showed them the box, they knew that was the box.'' Employees at Postnet described the suspect as a blond-haired white man, 28-32 years old, 6 feet 2 inches tall and weighing 180 pounds, with tattoos on his left forearm, Montoya said. He was wearing an olive green short-sleeved shirt and green safari pants, wore black stud earrings in both ears and a hoop earring earring, a personal adornment, sometimes an amulet, worn attached to the ear lobe. Since prehistoric times the ear has been pierced for the insertion of the earring; certain primitive tribes distort the lobe with plugs several inches in diameter or with heavy stones. in his left ear. Joseff Calhoun, 30, received the package on Feb. 21 and opened it. The snake's head snake's head see fritillaria meleagris. emerged and Calhoun quickly closed the box and contacted authorities. Whoever sent the snake could be charged with assault with a deadly weapon Assault with a Deadly Weapon is the term used to describe the act of threatening to harm one or more people by using a weapon (usually a firearm). Here, assault must be differentiated from battery as they are often confused. Assault is threatening to use force. , attempted murder In the criminal law, attempted murder is committed when the defendant does an act that is more than merely preparatory to the commission of the crime of murder and, at the time of these acts, the person has a specific intention to kill. and violations of the federal fish and game code, Richter said. Calhoun told police he did not have any enemies and didn't know why anyone would send him a snake. But police later confirmed he received a threatening letter in November. Calhoun was not available for comment Friday. Calhoun's attorney, Malanie Baghdaian, said she hopes the suspect is caught. ``It's something that somebody has planned,'' Baghdaian said. ``So we're hoping that they find out who did this so (Calhoun) won't be hurt.'' A curator of reptiles at the Los Angeles Zoo The Los Angeles Zoo founded in 1966, is a large zoo located in Los Angeles, California, USA. The Zoo, located in Los Angeles' Griffith Park, is home to 1,200 animals from around the world. said the snake appeared to be 1 to 2 years old and had a serious head wound. It was later destroyed. Anyone with information about the case is asked to call the LAPD's West Valley detective division at (818) 756-8553. CAPTION(S): photo Photo: Police suspect this man mailed the cobra on Feb. 20. |
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