Overview

• On July 8, officers in Potrero station detained the 17-year-old for carrying a roughly one-meter ball python without presenting a physical Semarnat wildlife permit.
• The teenager’s father arrived with documentation and a transport container but transit authorities determined the digital permit alone did not satisfy regulatory requirements.
• Authorities opened a formal biodiversity investigation under SEMARNAT-08-056 and referred the minor to a juvenile agency for alleged wildlife offences.
• The ball python remains secured at the Ministerio Público where reptile specialists will assess its health and legal status before ruling on its disposition.
• Mexican law mandates exotic fauna transporters hold both a physical Semarnat permit and, if applicable, a captive-breeding certificate, and CDMX Metro enforces these rules on its network.