3 Large Pythons Spotted in New York City, Only 1 Snake Captured

Beware: snakes on the loose!

Three ball pythons were spotted in Forest Park, a N.Y.C. park located in Queens, on Wednesday, Sept. 24, per animal rescue Puppy Kitty NY City. According to the New York-based rescue, only one of the three snakes has been apprehended — the other two have evaded capture thus far.

During the surprising snake sighting, New Yorkers watched the reptile cross a city street, according to Puppy Kitty NY City’s Instagram post about the slithering critters. A staffer at the rescue was on her way home when she “saw people trying to guide them out of the road,” per the post.

Puppy Kitty NY City’s Meagan Licari — who typically works with the fuzzy, not scaly, animals — helped to secure one of the pythons, which measured 4 feet in length, according to CBS News. “I used the box to actually secure him,” Licari told the outlet, “and we put him in a bag after, and then we put him from the bag into the box.”

The animal welfare organization named the python Kevin. The animal rescuer told CBS News, “we thought that was a really cute snake name.”

Kevin was then taken to Animal Care Centers of NYC to be placed in an incubator, according to ABC7 Eyewitness News and United Press International (UPI). He “was taken right in and has already found rescue placement,” according to Puppy Kitty NY City.

Meanwhile, the other two pythons are still on the loose, the rescue said.

The others “went deeper into the park by the time we got there,” Puppy Kitty NY City said on Instagram. “I am not sure they will ever be found, but we will try.”

“This is actually a really sad story,” the post stated, noting that ball pythons like those spotted in the park “are not native here, so they were for sure dumped pets.” (Pythons are on the list of exotic animals that are off-limits as pets in New York City, per the NYC311 website.)

The rescue also said that it alerted both the New York Police Department (NYPD) and park officials to the situation. (The NYPD did not immediately respond to PEOPLE’s request for comment.)

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Releasing animals inside city parks is illegal and punishable by a $1,000 fine, per CBS News.

“They were pets that were released into a park. I don’t know why people do that,” Licari told the outlet. “We have the amazing Animal Care Centers of New York, which are equipped to take any species at any time.”

While the search for the two escaped pythons continues, the rescue shared a send-off for the captured critter: “Good luck, Kevin!”