A Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission officer’s encounter with two men at a Bradford County shelter quickly moved from routine questioning to a venomous reptile investigation after a rattlesnake was found concealed nearby, according to the bodycam footage channel Fish and Wildlife Bust.
The channel’s host said FWC Officer Navarino was approaching the Oakhead shelter in Bradford County, Florida, when he noticed two men later identified as John Raffle and James Amis. According to the report, Raffle was moving quickly away from the tree line about 30 yards from the shelter while Amis remained seated at the area.
When Officer Navarino made contact, the situation already looked unusual. The host said the officer saw an assault-style rifle on a table along with numerous zip ties, and the rifle was later determined to be loaded.
The officer asked the men what they were doing, and they told him they were “just chilling.” When he asked whether they were hunting, both men denied it.
Navarino then moved the rifle away from them and began asking why they had brought it to the area. One of the men said the rifle was only there to have in the boat while riding, while the zip ties were described as being for the boat as well.
The officer did not immediately accuse them of anything, but he made clear that the setup did not make much sense to him. A rifle with a scope, zip ties spread out on a table, and two men in a wildlife management area during hunting season gave him enough reason to keep asking questions.
The Rifle, the Zip Ties and the First Explanation
As the questioning continued, Officer Navarino asked whether they had been hunting hogs or anything else, but the men again insisted they were not hunting. One of them said they had come for a ride and had only just pulled up.
When asked what he had been doing near the brush, Raffle said he was taking a leak. Navarino then asked whether they had anything in the boat and whether they would walk over there with him.
The officer also asked whether either of them had hunting licenses. Amis said he did not hunt, though the rifle was apparently his.
One of the men explained that he always brought a gun out there because he did not know who else might be in the area, describing concerns about drunk people or people “jumping” others. That explanation was not impossible, but the rest of the scene still appeared odd to the officer.
Navarino asked whether the rifle had one in the chamber, and the answer was yes. He then returned to the zip ties, asking why they were on the bench rather than in the boat if they were only for boat use.
The man said he had the zip ties floating around in the boat and had put them on the table, but the officer told him again that the whole thing looked strange.
“I’m sorry,” Navarino said in the footage, “it’s just a little strange what you guys are doing.”
That is the kind of detail that often matters in wildlife cases. One item alone might have an innocent explanation, but several items, several movements, and a location that does not match the story can begin to tell a different picture.
A Pet Carrier Hidden in the Brush
The case changed when Officer Navarino walked to the same area where he said he had seen Raffle near the brush. There, according to the Fish and Wildlife Bust host, the officer found a black pet carrier.
Inside was an eastern diamondback rattlesnake.
The host described the snake as highly venomous and noted that because the species is native to Florida, keeping it in captivity without the required permits is strictly prohibited. The report also connected the discovery to FWC’s recent enforcement push known as Operation Viper, which focuses on illegal trafficking of venomous reptiles into and out of Florida.
Navarino immediately brought the men over and challenged their story.
“So, the question becomes, is that what you were attempting to do?” he asked. “Is that what you guys are out here, collecting snakes?”
The men denied it.
Navarino pointed out that he had seen one of them over near the bushes and now there was a carrier with a rattlesnake in that same area. He did not seem convinced that the snake had nothing to do with them.
“Let’s not play these games,” the officer said.
The men repeatedly suggested it was not theirs. One appeared to say he wished he knew about it, while another said they did not mess with snakes.
That denial became harder to accept as the encounter went on, especially because one of the men later admitted he had dealt with captive wildlife permits in the past, though he said he had nothing current and “nothing like that” with rattlesnakes.
“We Don’t Mess With Snakes”
The officer was careful around the carrier and said he did not want to touch the snake more than necessary. At first, he thought it might be dead, but after a closer look, he realized it was alive.
“He’s still kicking,” Navarino said.
The officer said he needed to call a captive wildlife contact to decide whether the rattlesnake should be released nearby or taken somewhere else, explaining that officials can be cautious about releasing reptiles into different locations.
During the conversation, the men continued trying to distance themselves from the snake. The Fish and Wildlife Bust video description says they claimed they had no idea about the venomous reptile and stated, “We don’t mess with snakes.”
The host added that a quick look at the suspects’ social media appeared to contradict that claim, saying it showed the opposite. The video did not include a detailed review of those posts in the transcript, but the host’s point was clear: the denial sounded less convincing when placed next to other available information.
That is one reason excuses can become a problem during an investigation. A person may think a flat denial is the safest answer, but if officers find evidence suggesting otherwise, that denial can make the entire story look worse than a partial admission might have.
The Officer Pushes for the Truth
As the stop continued, one of the men complained that the situation was not fair and said he was worried about being charged with something he did not do. Officer Navarino replied that he was not the one who had a diamondback rattlesnake at the location.
“Own up to it,” the officer said. “Take your lick and we move on.”
Navarino told the men that the suspected offense was possession of a venomous reptile without a permit. When asked what he really thought was happening, he said they were either catching or releasing a diamondback rattlesnake.
“That’s it,” he said. “It’s one or the other.”
One of the men said he knew people connected to wildlife work, but the officer said that did not change how the situation looked. The rattlesnake was found near where the man had been standing, and the officer was not accepting the idea that it was just a coincidence without question.
Later, Navarino tried to have what he described as “one last conversation” with one of the men, suggesting he might be getting caught up in something that was not fully his doing. The man said he had recently gotten off probation and did not want to get into trouble for something he had nothing to do with.
The officer pressed him again, saying he understood not wanting to “rat” on a friend, but the man held to the denial.
A Court Date Instead of a Trip to Jail
Despite the seriousness of finding a venomous snake in a pet carrier, the officer did not take the men to jail in the footage. Navarino told them they were free to go, though he indicated paperwork would follow.
He also returned the rifle in a controlled way, saying he would place the magazine and rifle in the boat hatch and asking them not to touch it while leaving. The officer explained that he had taken it away during the encounter for safety, not because he was seizing it permanently.
The men appeared eager to leave by that point, and one asked whether they should wait for the officer to leave before handling the gun or heading out. Navarino told them to get in the boat and go.
The broader question left by the video is whether the rattlesnake had been captured, transported, or prepared for release. The officer said the facts pointed to one of those possibilities, while the men denied ownership and denied involvement.
From a public safety standpoint, the case is more than a strange wildlife stop. Eastern diamondback rattlesnakes are not casual pets, and handling or transporting venomous reptiles without proper authority can endanger the handler, officers, bystanders, and the animal itself.
The Fish and Wildlife Bust host framed the encounter as a case where the suspects’ explanations only made the situation look worse. Based on the footage, the officer seemed to reach the same conclusion: a loaded rifle, zip ties, a suspicious movement toward the brush, and a hidden carrier containing a live rattlesnake were too many coincidences to ignore.
By the end of the encounter, the men were not hauled away in handcuffs, but the case did not simply disappear. The rattlesnake in the carrier turned a questionable stop into a wildlife investigation, and the officer’s final message was that the facts would be handled through paperwork and court rather than roadside argument.
Raised in a small Arizona town, Kevin grew up surrounded by rugged desert landscapes and a family of hunters. His background in competitive shooting and firearms training has made him an authority on self-defense and gun safety. A certified firearms instructor, Kevin teaches others how to properly handle and maintain their weapons, whether for hunting, home defense, or survival situations. His writing focuses on responsible gun ownership, marksmanship, and the role of firearms in personal preparedness.
