An angry mob has killed close to 300 crocodiles in Indonesia after a local man was murdered by one of the reptiles, as reported by the authorities on Monday
The mass killing happened on Saturday July 14, in Papua province after the funeral of the man, who was killed after he mistakenly fell into a crocodile farm while looking for grass to feed his livestock, officials revealed.
The victim, 48-year-old Sugito was bitten on the leg and then struck with a tail of one of the crocodiles, which are the protected species. Sugito's relatives and some local residents, who are angry over the farm's location near a residential area, stormed the local police station.
It was revealed by the Local conservation agency head, Bassar Manulang, that the farm had agreed to pay compensation, but, the angry mob, numbered in hundreds, was not satisfied and headed to the crocodile farm with weapons like knives, shovels and machetes which they used in slaughtering 292 crocodiles, which ranged from four-inch-long babies to two-metre adults. The police and conservation agency were outnumbered and unable to stop the brutal attack.
The authorities are still investigating and may lay criminals charges.
“For now we are still questioning the witnesses,” said Dewa Made Sidan Sutrahna, the police chief in Papua’s Sorong district.
The Indonesian archipelago is home to a vast array of wildlife, including several species of crocodile that regularly attack and kill humans.
In March authorities on the Indonesian half of Borneo island killed a six-metre long crocodile after it ate a local palm plantation worker.
Two years ago, a Russian tourist was also killed by a crocodile in the Raja Ampat islands, a popular diving site in the east of the archipelago
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