The seven foot, fifty pound red tail boa constrictor is something of a legend around Seminole Square.

"The pet store here in the shopping center closed down and released their animals into the wild, including a boa constrictor," said Johnny Garver, a former Boathouse employee.

One night about two months ago, another employee at the Boathouse encountered the same boa, stabbing it with a kitchen knife. In the following weeks, people searched the woods behind the Boathouse parking lot, looking for the elusive snake.

"People would show up here and I would ask if they were coming to dine, and they would say no, they were looking for the snake," said Garver.

The Boathouse shut down in August and Garver came by today to pick up his last paycheck. The snake, the furthest thing from his mind, when he pulled up and found it sunning itself in the back parking lot.

"I saw that it was injured and I didn't want to leave it to die," Garver said. "I figure we should find it a new home instead of leaving it out here to die."

Garver's home, however, is not a permanent option. "My girlfriend will not let me keep it," Garver said.

He was able to connect with the Central Virginia Reptile Rescue based in Dillwyn. The snake suffered stab wounds so the rescue crew will take it to a veterinarian for treatment. Once the snake heals, the rescue crew will find it a permanent home with a pet store or school.