Beware the scales of justice.
An iguana non grata and its owner were ejected from a Colorado courthouse after an X-ray picked up the lizard lounging inside a bag.
Deputies at the Boulder County Justice Center are used to detecting weapons and other contraband at the security checkpoint, but the smuggled reptile was a surprise.
The Sheriff’s Office tweeted the skeletal image and a warning: “At the Justice Center only service animals are allowed. No iguanas . . . even if it goes through the X-ray machine.”
The animal’s owner was turned away, according to Boulder County sheriff’s spokeswoman Carrie Haverfield.
“Apparently he was there with some friends, so he waited outside with his iguana,” Haverfield told The Daily Camera.
People have tried to sneak in before with dogs, cats and even mice, she added.
“Unfortunately, it is not the first time someone tried to put an animal through the X-ray,” Haverfield said. “Sometimes people do put through strange things in there.”