Man jailed for nine years for eating python meat

A Zimbabwean man has been jailed for nine years for eating python, a protected species, a Zimbabwean daily reported on Friday.

Archwell Maramba said he had been eating the snakemeat for its medicinal value.

"I wanted to eat the python to cure my spine and since I ate my first python I have seen remarkable improvement," NewsDay quoted Maramba as saying during his court case.

Acting on a tipoff, police found the 58-year-old drying snakeskin and python meat stashed in his house.