NC 8-year-old bitten by boa constrictor he was trying to pet

GREENVILLE, S.C. — Police say an 8-year-old boy vacationing with his family in South Carolina was bitten by a boa constrictor he was trying to pet.

A report filed by Greenville police says the family from Trenton, North Carolina, was walking through downtown Greenville on Sunday when they came upon a man letting people pet a nonvenomous Colombian red-tailed boa.

Police spokesman Officer Gilberto Franco says the boy and his father approached and asked to pet the snake, which was about 5 feet long. When the boy tried, the snake bit him on the right forearm.

The snake was pulled off the boy, who was taken into a nearby restaurant for a towel and water. Emergency personnel arrived and treated the boy's wound.

No charges have been filed and the snake was not seized.

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