Days after police in the Lehigh Valley shot and killed a giant snake that had wrapped itself around the neck of a 27-year-old man, the man died from his injuries.
The Lehigh County Coroner's Office reported Monday that Elliot Senseman, a 27-year-old Upper Macungie Township man, died Sunday morning at Lehigh Valley Hospital, Cedar Crest.
In its news release, the coroner ruled the cause of death as "Anoxic Brain Injury due to Asphyxiation by Constriction." The manner of death was ruled an accident.
"A Boa Constrictor type snake approximately 18’ in length constricted around the neck of Mr. Senseman, thus causing the anoxic brain injury (complete lack of oxygen to the brain)," the coroner's office said.
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When Upper Macungie Township police officers arrived around 2:15 p.m. Wednesday, Senseman was already unconscious and in cardiac arrest in his Fogelsville neighborhood home, authorities said. In an attempt to save the man, officers shot the boa in the head "without risking further injury to the male" and killed it, Upper Macungie Township police said.
It was a pet snake that had grown enormous, police said.
Police originally said the snake was at least 15 feet long. On Monday, the coroner's office said the snake was actually 18 feet long.
Senseman was pulled from the snake's grasp after the gunfire and rushed to the hospital.
The county coroner's office and the the Upper Macungie Township Police Department continued to investigate the incident.
When police searched the house, at least two other snakes were found. Other animals were also at the home when NBC10 stopped by Monday. Senseman was known to rescue abused or abandoned animals, family members said.
