Drug dealer suspected of using snapping-turtle to guard stash in trunk of his car

People who don't want their drugs stolen may have a new line of defense: a guard snapping turtle.

According to the Oklahoma Department of Wildlife Conservation - Game Wardens, Oklahoma Highway Patrol troopers and Tulsa police officers were attacked by a snapping turtle found in the trunk of a car involved in a hit-and-run accident. After officers found drugs in the car, they opened the trunk and immediately slammed it closed in fear after the turtle jumped aggressively at them.

Police believe the turtle was in the trunk "to deter 'friends' of the suspect from stealing his stash of drugs." Authorities initially were searching the car after the vehicle matched the description of one involved in a hit-and-run accident on the Muskogee Turnpike. The suspect drove 10 to 15 more miles with a wrecked car, officials said.
The driver reportedly was driving from Fort Smith, Arkansas, to Dallas, but ended up in Tulsa. Officers believe the suspect wound up in Tulsa because he was too intoxicated to know where he was. The suspect was arrested and booked into the Wagner County Jail, and charges are pending.