Indonesian villagers armed with knives, hammers and clubs have slaughtered nearly 300 crocodiles in revenge for the death of a man killed by a reptile at a breeding farm.
Sugito, who worked at a tofu factory in Sorong, West Papua, was looking for grass to feed his cattle on Saturday when he was bitten by a crocodile.
His screams alerted a local resident who ‘heard him shouting for help but [he] was found dead,’ Olha told The Jakarta Post.
Local residents look at the carcasses of hundreds of crocodiles from a breeding farm after they were killed by angry locals
After local villagers attended his funeral on Saturday, around 600 armed themselves with sharp implements and descended upon a crocodile farm, owned by Albert Siahaan, to avenge his death.
The bloody attack resulted in 292 baby and larger crocodiles, up to two metres in length, hauled from their water-filled enclosures and hacked to death with hoes, picks and other sharp tools.
Up to 40 police officers tried to stop the slaughter, but were outnumbered by the angry mob.
Angry villagers break into the crocodile farm and drag captive reptiles from enclosures
Some of the crocodiles hauled out from the farm were up to two metres in length
Crocodile after crocodile had its mouth tied shut with rope, as villagers sought revenge
They were attacked with sharp implements including hoes, machetes and knives
‘We couldn’t do anything. The situation was so tense,’ said Sorong police chief, Dewa Made Sutrahna, according to ABC News.
It was unclear whether the crocodile which bit Sugito has among those slaughtered.
‘The residents used knives to slaughter the crocodiles,’ Olha told The Jarkarta Post, adding, ‘The crocodiles were caught and dragged outside and stabbed to death. It was so horrid to see.’
While no arrests were made, the farm’s owner and four other people were questioned by police, with officers suggesting that a security guard might have a negligence charge brought against him.
Basar Manullang, head of West Papua Natural Resources Conservation Agency, criticised the cruel revenge, saying: ‘The crocodile slaughter violated the law on destroying others’ property.’
Police officers tried to intervene, to stop the crocodiles from being slaughtered, but with up to just 40 attending the scene they were too few in number, against the 600-strong crowd
The reptiles were held down and killed by villagers in Sorong, West Papua
Cruel: a baby crocodile is shown above, being killed during the mass cull
He said the crocodile farm was lawfully run, as it had an official permit issued by the Environment and Forestry Ministry.
‘The permit is legal and the process [to obtain it] in Jakarta took a long [time]. There were steps and requirements to meet and it was under the authority of the local government.
‘The crocodile slaughter is obviously against the law.’
Basar Manullang, of West Papua Natural Resources Conservation Agency, criticised the cruel revenge, saying: ‘The crocodile slaughter violated the law on destroying others’ property’
The reptiles’ bodies start piling up outside of the farm owned by a resident of Sorong, Albert Siahaan
Close to 300 captive baby and large crocodiles were killed in the bloody attack in West Papua, Indonesia, on Saturday