DALAT: A 14-foot-long (4.5 metres) crocodile was caught during a crocodile hunting operations at Batang Oya last Sunday (Mar 21).
The success in this capture was a result of a collaboration between Sarawak Forestry Corporation (SFC) and the district’s police after 10 days of crocodile hunting.
“It is believed to be a saltwater crocodile.
“According to SFC, adult crocodiles of this size can threaten human lives if they are in their habitat,” Dalat police chief DSP Saga Chunggat said.
Hence, villagers, especially fishermen and sago farmers in Batang Oya are advised to always remain cautious about the threat of wild creatures.
He added that a team of nine SFC and police officers would use three boats to hunt for the reptiles daily.
“The (SFC) personnel will plant the baits using a fishing method while the police take care of the team’s safety on the boat.
“Crocodile baits are installed at locations where these adult creatures are often seen. The task is very dangerous as the team will have to approach the vicious reptiles to record their sizes,” he said.
Apart from that, Saga said the teams would also carry out patrols (by boat) at night to observe the reptiles as they are easier to spot in the dark.
The crocodile hunting operations, which was launched on Mar 13, will be carried out until Thursday (Mar 25).
He added that the operations was set up following a crocodile attack involving a fisherman known as Alibaba Dahri, 52, who was said to have gone out fishing for shrimp around 2am on Mar 6 in Kampung Kuala Oya.
The victim’s body was later found the next day on the banks of Kampung Senau, about 8km from where his boat was found.
Alibaba became the fourth victim of fatal crocodile attacks in Batang Oya since 2015.
