A giant reticulated python sparked panic after it slithered into the engine compartment of a parked pickup truck.

The massive reptile reportedly attacked a monitor lizard before it was spooked into hiding in the vehicle in Bangkok, Thailand, on April 23.

Truck owner Dang, 63, said he had poked the beast when he saw it squeezing the monitor lizard to death. He called snake catchers when it slithered into his engine compartment.

Footage shows the specialists wrangling the astonishing 13ft animal from the machinery using their bare hands. It took around 20 minutes to pry it fee.

A rescue volunteer said: 'The operation was challenging because the python was quite large. It weighed 44 pounds and had wrapped itself tightly around the turbo pipe. We had to be careful loosening its grip and pulling it out. It was incredibly strong. It took several of just to carry it.'

The python was later placed in a sack to be released into the wilderness.

The reticulated python is found throughout Southeast Asia, where they live in forests, swamps, canals and even in cities, causing them to come into conflict with humans. The species is one of the world's largest snakes and can eat humans, cats, dogs, birds, rats and other snakes.