A couple were terrified after a “venomous” scorpion from Cancun hitched a ride to the UK to escape Hurricane Beryl – by hiding in their luggage.

John Gray, 27, and his girlfriend, Jodie Daly, 26 had just returned from Mexico and were unpacking their suitcases when the unwelcome visitor emerged.

He heard Jodie screaming from another room, and ran in to spot the creature which had travelled 5,500 miles and survived a 10-hour Tui flight.

He managed to trap the scorpion in a pint glass before transferring it to a takeaway container – with added air holes – and calling a local reptile rescue.

But they had to keep the arachnid - which they discovered was pregnant - overnight before it could be taken to the rescue the following morning.

John, a client solutions manager from Streatham, said: “We got back to the flat and Jodie was sorting out the washing.

“As she pulled out a t-shirt and the scorpion dropped out and ran into the bedroom.

“All I heard was her screaming and shouting - I had no idea what was going on.

“She was shouting ‘scorpion’, but I still didn’t know what she meant – I ran in there and found a six-inch scorpion sitting in the bedroom trying to hide under the washing.

“We didn't even see one while we were in Mexico - I was shocked.

“I called Mitcham Zoo who work with non-native species and reptiles, and they wanted to send it over to their team to do some research.

“They said it was highly likely it was highly venomous - we kept it in a container inside a Hello Fresh box.

"We were trying not to kill it but to also stop it from killing us.”

The couple spent 11 days in Playa del Carmen, near Cancun in Mexico, and were in the country when Hurricane Beryl hit.

They believe the scorpion snuck into their luggage while looking for shelter during the intense storm.

And the pair had to keep the animal in their flat overnight before it could be handed over to reptile rehoming organisation Mitcham Zoo on July 9.

Gareth North, from Mitcham Zoo, said: “It's venomous, it’s a venomous species and it’s pregnant but I can’t confirm the species yet because it needs to be confirmed by a specialist.

“We’ll be passing on to the National Centre for Reptile Welfare (NCRW) at the end of the week – it goes onto a specialist from there who looks after it for the rest of it’s life.

“It’s classed as a stowaway - most stowaways end up at the NCRW and this one will also be going there.

“A professional who keeps these scorpions will be taking it on long term.

“We're a rescue and we rehome animals - keeping these animals requires a license.”