KINGSLAND, Ga. (AP) - Federal prosecutors say a man on trial in Georgia was seeking to become famous as someone who survived a deadly bite from a black mamba -- but they say the story was a hoax.
John K. Rosenbaum Jr. of Jacksonville, Fla., is accused of touching off a desperate search for the snake in south Georgia after telling authorities he was bitten in November 2011. The snake is among the world's deadliest.
The Brunswick News reports that Rosenbaum faces charges of making false statements to authorities.
Prosecutors say he was hospitalized after a bite from his pet Egyptian banded cobra, but no black mamba was involved.
Defense lawyer James Newton contends his client was suffering from an extremely poisonous snake bite when he described what happened and did not attempt to mislead authorities.
