Missing 12-foot python found in crawlspace at Louisiana mall

July 8 (UPI) -- An interactive aquarium located at Louisiana's largest mall announced a 12-foot escaped python was safely recaptured after more than 48 hours of searching.

The Blue Zoo, a recently opened interactive aquarium at the Mall of Louisiana in Baton Rouge, said Cara the Burmese Python was captured in a crawlspace at the mall early Thursday morning, more than 48 hours after the reptile escaped from her enclosure.

The zoo had enlisted the help of a specialist reptile trapper and local animal control officials to search the mall for the missing python. A Blue Zoo caretaker, identified as Victoria, said the searchers found evidence of Cara in the ceiling.

"She was in our ceiling," Victoria told WBRZ-TV. "We knew exactly where she was for the most part."

Victoria said Cara is a docile snake that did not pose any danger to mall visitors during her time on the loose. She said Cara had found a comfortable spot in the crawlspace.

"She did the snake thing, where she coiled up and sat down and hunkered down," she said.

The zoo said it is investigating the specifics of Cara's escape.