Don’t Miss This: Officer, can you help me find my 9 1/2-foot boa constrictor?

Don’t miss these top stories Friday on BND.com:

▪ Residents in a Madison county town are sleeping easier after a loose 9 1/2-foot-long boa constrictor has finally been tracked down.

Police in Grantfork said they got a call from a resident that he took his four snakes -- two boa constrictors and two pythons -- outside to allow them to sun themselves when one escaped.

The missing snake was found several hours later, wrapped up in the engine compartment of its owner’s truck.

▪ Belleville police have arrested three teens they found driving a stolen SUV that contained loaded guns and stolen property.

The teens were driving a Chevrolet Tahoe stolen out of Clayton, Mo. when officers attempted to pull them over.

Police believe the teenagers may be responsible for a spring of auto burglaries reported in central Belleville lately.

▪ The state’s budget crisis has been a financial windfall for the Secretary of State’s Office.

Thanks to the fact that the office, which is responsible for managing vehicle registrations, suspended the process of sending out renewal notices to save money, it has raked in twice as much cash from late fees.

So far this year, the Secretary of State has collected $5.24 million more in late fees than it did in the first half of 2015.

This story was originally published June 24, 2016 at 7:48 AM with the headline "Don’t Miss This: Officer, can you help me find my 9 1/2-foot boa constrictor?."