Police officer tells of operation to retrieve human remains from crocodile

Key developments are emerging from the global stage. Police officer tells of operation to retrieve human remains from crocodile2 hours ago Share Save Add as preferred on GoogleMayeni JonesAfrica correspondent, JohannesburgJohan PotgieterA police officer has recalled the moment he was lowered from a helicopter into a crocodile-infested river in South Africa as part of an effort to recover human remains. Captain Johan Potgieter was tasked with capturing a crocodile suspected of eating a businessman who had been swept away by floodwater. "The crocodile itself was lying on an island...

there really was no other way to get to it except from the air," he told the . Since the operation, remains have been found inside the 4. 5m (15ft) and 500kg (1,100lb) crocodile.

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DNA tests are underway to confirm their identity. The man's car had become stranded attempting to cross a low bridge in the flooded Komati River last week. By the time the police got to the scene, it was empty, leading them to suspect he had been swept away by the water.

Drones and helicopters were used to in the search mission which led police to a small island where a number of crocodiles lay in the sun, one of which they believed had eaten the man. The suspect crocodile was shot by Potgieter's colleagues before he was called. "It turned onto its back and they thought that it was dead.

But by the time we went back, it was back onto its right side and it had swum a bit upstream," he explained. The presence of other crocodiles, hippos and rocks in the river, meant it was too dangerous to use a boat or canoe to recover the body, Potgieter told the . "There were other crocodiles next to that one that were probably there because of the blood in the water.

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But luckily because of the noise of the helicopter and the downdraft blowing around, they moved away and didn't bother me," the veteran officer said. Once Potgieter agreed to do the recovery operation, there was no turning back. "When I was hanging there, there was no way for me to communicate with the pilot.

So irrespective of whether I changed my mind and decided not to do it, there was no way that that was going to happen," he added. "I had to stick to the plan and do as we had planned... otherwise things would have gone wrong.

"On Sunday, South Africa's acting police chief praised Potgieter's "extraordinary bravery", describing the operation as "highly dangerous and complex". The police said it was a "highly dangerous and complex operation"Potgieter, a member of the national police force's diving unit, could only be certain the crocodile was dead after when he was lowered into the river and tied a rope around it. "Then I knew it was 100% dead.

The development has drawn wide international attention, with diplomatic circles watching closely.