Crocodile Kills Woman Bathing In Indonesian River

In eastern Indonesia, a crocodile attacked and killed a woman who was bathing in a river, according to police and local sources. Villagers later recovered parts of her body from the remains of the animal.

Indonesia is home to several species of crocodiles that regularly attack and kill humans.

Halima Rahakbauw, 54, was swimming in a river in Wali village on the Maluku islands after spending Tuesday morning looking for clams when the reptile struck.

Rahakbauw’s neighbour, Rustam Ilyas, said relatives and friends started a search when she failed to return home.

After spotting a sandal and a body part in the river, villagers reported the incident to police who killed the reptile.

“The villagers had to cut open the crocodile’s belly to remove some of the victim’s body parts,” a local police officer, who requested anonymity as he was not authorised to speak on the matter, told AFP Wednesday.

“The crocodile was quite big, around four metres (12 feet)long,” neighbour Ilyas told AFP.

Neither the police nor villagers could identify the species.