North Carolina owner of escaped cobra facing 36 charges, cops say

The owner of a deadly cobra that busted out of a North Carolina home is facing dozens of criminal charges in the snake’s slippery escape, police said.

Christopher Gifford, 21, of Raleigh, was hit with 36 misdemeanor counts for allowing the venomous zebra cobra to flee the basement of his parents’ home, the Charlotte Observer reported. The zebra cobra — which are native to Africa and can spit venom up to nine feet — was spotted on a porch on June 28 before it was captured about a half-mile away from Gifford’s home by Raleigh animal control officers two days later.