South African police found human remains inside a crocodile that was pulled from a river last week.
In a "highly dangerous and complex" operation, part of a search for a missing businessman swept away in floods last week, an officer was lowered by helicopter into a croc-infested river.
The South African Police Service said the animal had been euthanised before Captain Johan "Pottie" Potgieter was lowered towards it.
He secured the animal with a rope, and both were lifted high in the air.
The BBC reported that the reptile was 4.5 metres long and weighed around 500kg.
The crocodile was taken to the nearby Kruger National Park, where human remains were found in its intestines.
"The discovery of the remains means that the police have now taken the body parts found in the intestines of the crocodile for DNA analysis to confirm the identity of the deceased," Acting National Commissioner of the South African Police Service, Lieutenant General Puleng Dimpane, said.
According to the BBC, Potgieter said six different types of shoes were found inside the crocodile.
The operation was part of a search for 59-year-old Gabriel Batista, a hotel boss believed to have been eaten after being swept away by floodwaters.
Mpumalanga provincial police spokesperson Colonel Mavela Masondo told SABC that Batista's car had become stranded while trying to cross a bridge flooded last week. When police arrived at the scene, the vehicle was empty.
Potgieter told local outlet News24 that crews had used drones and helicopters in the search for the missing man.
When they found a small island with several crocodiles basking in the sun, he noticed one had recently eaten.
"Besides having a massively full tummy, he didn't move around or try to slip into the river despite the noise of the drones and the chopper."
Potgieter was praised for his "heroism, bravery, professionalism, and dedication".
“There were so many things that could go wrong, and the rope basically lowered me onto the snout of the crocodile, so I was kind of hoping it really was properly dead,” Potgieter recounted.
“There were two crocs nearby watching as I slipped the harness around the waist of the dead crocodile and secured it under the front legs and tightened the strap.”
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