SANDAKAN: A 2.5-metre-long python startled residents when it was found swallowing a kitten at a house near SJK(C) Pei Ying, Jalan Cecily, on Thursday.
The incident occurred after the pet owner, suspicious over the disappearance of one of her five kittens, decided to inspect the backyard.
There, she spotted the python in a corner of the cat enclosure. The mother cat was not around at the time.
Fearing for the safety of her family and neighbours, she immediately contacted the MERS 999 emergency line for help.
The State Operations Control Centre alerted the Malaysian Civil Defence Force (APM) Sandakan at 10.12am.
According to Sandakan District Civil Defence Officer Captain (PA) Sulaiman Salama, the rescue operation took about 30 minutes and was carried out carefully using two snake-catching tools.
The python was caught, placed into a gunny sack, securely tied, and later released back into its natural habitat.
