New Delhi: The remains of an Australian fisherman, who went missing while fishing with friends in crocodile-infested waters, have been found inside two reptiles, police said on Wednesday.
According to AFP, Kevin Darmody, 65, had gone fishing on Saturday in far north Queensland as part of a group, who shooed away a crocodile so they could start fishing, police said.
People fishing with the pub manager heard him "yell, scream very loudly, followed by a large splashing of water", Cairns police inspector Mark Henderson said, reported AFP.
The other fishermen with Darmody at the time didn’t see the attack, but reported hearing him yell followed by a loud splash, according to a BBC report.
"I raced down… but there was no sign of him, just his thongs [flip-flops] on the bank and nothing else," his friend John Peiti told the Cape York Weekly.
Following a two-day search of the area, park rangers euthanised two large crocodiles – one measuring about 4.2 metres (14 feet) and the other 2.8 metres (nine feet) – which were found upstream from where the group was fishing within Lakefield National Park.
As per AFP, examinations found human remains in both of the predators, police said.
Henderson described it as a "tragic, tragic ending".
The man was "a very nice fellow" from the rural north Queensland town of Laura, which has a population of about 130 people, Henderson said.
Queensland state wildlife official Michael Joyce urged people to beware.
"This is croc country. If you are in water and especially if you are in Lakefield, which is declared specifically for crocodile conservation, you should expect crocodiles in that water," he said.
According to BBC, after the ban on hunting in 1974, the crocodile population in Queensland has increased from 5,000 to around 30,000 today.
The report stated under Queensland's management programme, "problem crocodiles" are removed from areas where they threaten public safety and, in rare instances, euthanised.