Python joyrides around South Florida on sailboat from Keys

MARCO ISLAND, Fla. (AP) — Police say a 7-foot-python looking for a joyride snuck onto a sailboat in the Florida Keys and ended up staying onboard until the boat reached the state’s southwest Gulf Coast. The crew found the massive snake in the boat’s shower after the vessel docked Friday in Marco Island in southwest Florida. Police quickly responded and transferred the invasive snake to the custody of a local wildlife handler. Police posted photos of a smiling uniformed officer with the python tightly coiled around his arm. Pythons believed to be descended from pets freed from captivity over past decades are now ravaging the state’s native species in South Florida’s Everglades.