Robber ties up Australian family, steals snakes

ADELAIDE, Australia (AP) -- A man held up a woman and two children at gunpoint before fleeing with a dozen snakes worth more than 100,000 Australian dollars ($74,535), police said Thursday.

The man demanded the 12 green tree snakes, which are not venomous, when he approached the door of the woman's home near the South Australian state capital, Adelaide, on Wednesday, state police said Thursday.

He then stuffed the snakes - measuring up to 31 inches long - into a duffel bag and bound the woman's ankles and the hands of two boys before fleeing the scene.

The snakes are valued at A$9,000 ($6,708) each, police said.