It's a tricky mystery.
A 5-foot-long snake was found in the kitchen sink of an Upper West Side apartment Wednesday morning, but it's unclear where it came from, police said.
Police were called to the apartment at about 8 a.m. after a resident at 140 West 87th Street saw a boa constrictor crawl up an exterior gate and enter the basement apartment, officials said.
NYPD Emergency Services units responded to the scene and captured the reptile after it crawled up an outside fence, then handed it over to the New York City Animal Care Center.
Police said it is unclear who the brown spotted boa constrictor's owner is or where it came from.
The strange discovery shocked local residents.
“I'm very worried because I have a cat and a little daughter. It appears to have been a boa constrictor,” resident Alex Nochesse, 36, told The Washington Post, adding that the snake was in the homeowner's backyard.
A spokesman for the animal shelter said it is illegal to own a boa constrictor in New York.
The spokesperson said the animal was placed in a foster home outside of New York City.
The discovery comes just days after a New York man was involved in an accident in which he and his roommate were transporting a sofa when they found a live 3.5-foot white snake under a seat in a rented U-Haul van.
The driver picked it up, thinking it was a misplaced toy.
“It was warm and heavy, and it turned its head and looked at me,” Jared, who did not want to give his last name, told The Washington Post after being hit by a car in SoHo.
“I hate snakes. I panicked, took my foot off the brake and crashed into the car in front of me.”
