Stay up to date with notifications from The Independent

Notifications can be managed in browser preferences.

Boy finds live snake in box of breakfast cereal packet

Alex Thompson
Thursday 05 May 2005 00:00 BST
Comments

Your support helps us to tell the story

From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.

At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.

The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.

Your support makes all the difference.

A boy aged five got the shock of his short life when he opened his box of breakfast cereal and a 2ft live snake wriggled out.

Jordan Willett, from Dawley, Shropshire, had been exploring the box of Golden Puffs hoping for a gift to play with. His mother Theresa, 23, who was having breakfast with her son at the time, said that at first she thought it was a toy for children.

She said: "My lad, he went to open his cereal on Bank Holiday Monday and luckily enough I was behind him because a snake popped out. I just screamed. I grabbed the box from him and found some Sellotape. Jordan's still in shock. He's not eating. Neither am I."

The family, who brought the 89p packet of Collier's brand cereal from a branch of Netto at Wrekin Retail Park on Saturday, said they would be taking things further. Clive Cooper, Netto trading director, said: "This does seem to be a bizarre incident but we are taking it very seriously. Netto is in discussions with its supplier to ensure that all procedures are reviewed and we will be making checks on our stock."

An expert called in to examine the corn snake, which is non-venomous and feeds on mice and birds, said he had no doubt the animal had been kept as a pet in Britain and appeared well-looked after. Corn snakes can grow to 5ft long, and crush prey before eating them, but they are friendly to humans. The snake is in a pet shop.

Join our commenting forum

Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies

Comments

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in