SYDNEY (AFP) – Australian police said Thursday they believe they have found the remains of a 12-year-old girl reportedly attacked by a crocodile while swimming near a remote settlement.
The child disappeared on Tuesday evening after swimming at Mango Creek near Palumpa, a small, largely Indigenous settlement about seven hours’ drive southwest of territory capital Darwin.
“Initial reports stated the child had been attacked by a crocodile,” Northern Territory Police said in a statement.
After searching the creek, police said they had found remains “believed to be that of a missing 12-year-old child”.
“This is devastating news for the family, the community and everyone involved in the search,” said senior sergeant Erica Gibson.
Crocodile attacks are rare but not unheard of in Australia’s sparsely populated Northern Territory.
A 4.5 metre (15 foot) crocodile was shot and killed after stalking locals near Palumpa in 2013.
In 2017, a 54-year-old man was mauled in a non-fatal attack in the same area.
Earlier this year, a saltwater crocodile was shot, cooked and eaten after menacing a different Northern Territory community.
