By Kasun Warakapitiya An incident thought to be a crocodile attack on a youth has taken a new twist, with investigators believing it to be a murder. Reports spread on Tuesday, September 1, that a body of a youth was being attacked and dragged by a crocodile, triggering panic and angry reactions against wildlife officials. [...]
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An incident thought to be a crocodile attack on a youth has taken a new twist, with investigators believing it to be a murder.
Reports spread on Tuesday, September 1, that a body of a youth was being attacked and dragged by a crocodile, triggering panic and angry reactions against wildlife officials.
The incident set off a chain reaction with many sharing messages on safety measures to be taken during crocodile encounters and messages raising concerns over crocodiles inhabiting canals in urban and suburban areas. The shared social media posts mostly demonised crocodiles.
Police investigations and the post-mortem report indicate that death was not due to an attack by a crocodile but due to blunt force trauma caused to the chest wall and the multiple complications caused to internal organs.
The body had been dragged away from the canal near the Mihisaru Resource Management Center, Karadiyana
The victim was identified as Shehan Tharaka Perera, 23, a resident of Angulana. The post-mortem report explained that death was caused by injuries occurring in the internal organs due to blunt force trauma caused to the chest wall. The report further added that the injuries caused by the crocodile were secondary and occurred after he had died.
The post-mortem report also revealed that the body had been in the water about two days and was in a swollen state, while it did not show signs of drowning or being attacked by a crocodile.
The report was issued by Dr Sandaken Waduge, consultant judicial medical officer of the Colombo South Teaching Hospital (Kalubowila).
Suspicions have been raised about the youth being knocked down by a vehicle, a heavy fall from a height, or assault. Investigators claim that the impact of the trauma was the result of a significant force equivalent to being knocked down by a vehicle.
Initial investigations were done by the miscellaneous complaint branch of the Piliyandala police after they received a call that a body of a man was seen being dragged away by a crocodile in the canal near the Mihisaru Resource Management Center, Karadiyana.
Sub-Inspector Pradeep Liyanaarachchi, head of the miscellaneous coplaint branch, said that according to initial investigations, the youth had left the house Sunday, August 30. His body was found on Tuesday, August 1.
SI Liyanarachchi said, “The post-mortem report said the death of the youth was due to blunt force trauma to the chest wall as well as damages caused to the internal organs.’’
He said that according to the post-mortem report, the police would consider the incident as a murder and would investigate further under the crime division of the Piliyandala police.
The Sunday Times learned that the police are investigating various possibilities as the cause of death, such as a vehicle knocking down the youth from behind, a heavy fall, or assault.
The police also started checking CCTV footage from Angulana up to the area where the body was found.
Workers at the garbage dump who saw the crocodile dragging the body said they suspected it was a murder victim.
The deceased: Shehan Tharaka Perera
The employees who claimed anonymity for security reasons said that the body was days old and swollen and had turned black.
They pointed out the decaying body might have attracted the crocodile, which was trying to drag it to an area where it could have eaten it. The body could have been dumbed because it is a remote location.
“There are around 25 crocodiles, and there are few big crocodiles exceeding 13 feet. The two largest crocodiles could exceed 15 feet. Someone could throw a body to eliminate evidence,” they said.
There were puncture wounds on the body, but whether those were caused by stabbing or from a crocodile bite could not be verified.
It had been suspected that the naked body was dumped in the canal. A piece of cloth was on one hand, and it may have been used to tie the hands.
M.B. Anoja: " It's like the reptile helped us find my son's body" . Pix by M.A. Pushpa Kumara
However, police said that the hands of the deceased were not bound.
The mother of the deceased M.B. Anoja, 40, said her son had taken medication for drug withdrawl and had been at home suffering from drug withdrawal sickness.
She said he had run away last Sunday evening and could not be found. Later on Monday, they heard that her son was seen running in a nearby area Sunday night.
She suspected that her son had been murdered and left in the canal and that the crocodile had not attacked her son.
“I think that if not for the crocodile, we might not have found our son’s body. Crocodiles normally drag bodies under water. It’s like the reptile helped us to find the body,’’ she said.
The wildlife ranger in charge of Colombo, M.P. Sanjeewa, said crocodiles attack after repeatedly watching their prey, even for days and months.
He advised people to avoid repeatedly visiting areas inhabited by crocodiles or swim or use makeshift rafts to sial in such waters, especially at dusk when crocodiles are active.
A wildlife ranger explained that crocodiles are known to feed on carcasses, and one could drag away a decaying body regardless of whether it’s human or any other animal.
In this instance, the reptile was seen dragging away a decaying human body.
The wildlife ranger in charge of Colombo, M.P. Sanjeewa, told the Sunday Times that crocodile attacks on humans are rare and would happen if a person gets into the water.
“Crocodiles do not just attack humans; they mostly avoid people. If someone frequently visits the water’s edge or gets into the water during evening or at dusk, crocodiles might attack, but crocodiles attacking humans are rare,” he said.
According to him, even large crocodiles feed off fish, small mammals, other reptiles and birds. Crocodiles had been living in the waterways for many years, and it is humans who have invaded their territory.
He said people should not demonise the ancient reptile but learn more about it and help to conserve it.
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