A reticulated python was captured after consuming two cats at a grocery store.

The shop owner, Sujin Nuanchan, 67, opened her shop early in the morning and discovered the 16ft (5 metres) snake coiled up on the floor beside the door in Phatthalung, Thailand, on October 28.

Rescuers from Srinakarin District and Ban Na Subdistrict Municipality responded to a request to retrieve the reptile.

Local reports said that the animal was too full to move after consuming one male and one female cat.

Upon successfully taking the predator out of the shop, the team reportedly released it back into the wild, away from residential areas.

Sujin said: 'I found that my cats were missing, and I believe they had been eaten by the python. I never imagined encountering one this large.'

She added that snakes are often spotted at the shop because it is located near a cave at the foot of the Banthat mountain range.