Police airlift crocodile from river on suspicion of eating missing businessman

A CROCODILE has been helicoptered out of a river in South Africa after police suspected it of eating a missing person.

The ‘highly dangerous and complex’ operation came at the end of a week-long search for businessman Gabriel Batista, 59, who had been reported missing after his car became trapped in floodwaters.

Aerial reconnaissance had identified the reptile after it appeared unusually still, with a full, distended gut - a sign it had recently eaten a large meal.

The huge alligator, which was shot dead before being moved, was airlifted from the Komati River by a police diving team and delivered to Kruger National Park, where human remains were found in its stomach.

A South African Police Services statement confirmed the remains would be sent for DNA testing to confirm the identity of the victim.