A 23-year-old man was dragged by a crocodile in Malaysia’s Sabah state as his three friends watched in disbelief. The four men were trapping crabs in the waters near the Kampung Titingan village, according to a report by the Independent, when the crocodile lunged at the plantation worker. The man's friends said that the attack happened in a matter of seconds. Later, the police found the plantation worker’s body about 5 km away from the site of the attack, at the beach near the army post at Kampung Tanjung Batu.
While speaking to The Star, Lahad Datu district police chief Rohan Shah Ahmad said that the three friends “could only watch” as the attack unfolded. Ahmad added that the man vanished into the water in an instant before the friends could do anything.
“The three friends could only watch as the attack happened in a split second,” Ahmad was quoted by The Star.
"The friend vanished in an instant [into the water] before they could do anything," he added.
The body of the young man was found around 7:20 am (local time). The remains had bite marks on the left arm and head. Aside from this, there were scratches on the victims's chest, back of the neck, and back. His remains were sent to the Lahad Datu Hospital for an autopsy.
This was the first of such attacks in Lahad Datu this year, Ahmad said and advised people to be extra cautious around the sea and rivers.
In June, the remains of a missing 60-year-old were recovered from the stomach of a crocodile which was shot dead by wildlife rangers in Sabah. The male crocodile was 4.29 metres long and weighed 800 kg.
Last year, a one-year-old was mauled to death by a crocodile while the father was severely injured. The incident occurred when they were fishing off the coast of Lahad Datu. The child was snatched from their canoe by the reptile but as the father tried to rescue his child the crocodile overpowered him.