Police officer searches Melbourne man's backpack and finds a live python

A Melbourne policeman got a nasty surprise when he put his hand inside a cyclist's backpack during a bag search and discovered a large python.

The cyclist was stopped in Seaford, just before midnight on Monday.

Police say the officer put his hand into the backpack and felt a one-metre long West Australian python "slithering around".

He then had a "very heated conversation with the cyclist about the lack of warning regarding his pet snake", according to a Victoria Police statement.

The 32-year-old cyclist has been charged with drug-related offences.

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