The captured reptile being pulled up the river bank on its way to be taken to the crocodile farm.
MIRI: Residents of Kampung Labau in Sibuti can now breathe a sigh of relief after a 13-foot crocodile was captured at a river near the village on Saturday.
The male reptile, weighing over 300kg, was snared after it took a bait placed by the village’s former headman, known only as Yusuf, in his 60s.
It was learned that the croc was sighted at the river several times recently causing fear among the villagers, particularly the fishermen.
Miri Civil Defence Force (APM) officer Mohd Hazle Shah Abdul Hamid, in a statement to the press yesterday, said a team of three personnel was dispatched to the village following a call from Sarawak Forestry Corporation (SFC) at 1.12pm.
“We received a call from SFC’s Swift Wildlife Action Team (SWAT) requesting our help to remove the reptile and take it to the Benaya Crocodile Farm in Kuala Baram.
“The reptile had already been bound by the villagers and we transported it using a three-tonne lorry to the farm in Kuala Baram,” he said.