Police believe they have found the remains of a missing 12-year-old girl who vanished after a suspected crocodile attack.
The young girl was last seen swimming at Mango Creek, in the remote Northern Territory community of Nganmarriyanga, 360km south-west of Darwin, and was reported missing at 5.30pm on Tuesday.
Senior Sergeant Erica Gibson said the 12-year-old had reportedly been attacked by a crocodile and that an extensive search had been launched.
‘This is devastating news for the family, the community and everyone involved in the search. Police are providing support to the family and community, along with the first responders who attended the scene,’ she said.
Sgt Gibson said there was evidence that crocodiles had been in the area but that none had been spotted by the croc management team since the attack.
‘No crocodiles were sighted or located in the immediate area that croc-searching has occurred since sunset yesterday – there were no sightings overnight,’ she said.
The Search and Rescue team have been given the go ahead to remove the crocodile from the area in order to safely continue their search.
Police Minister Brent Potter said search efforts had shifted to a recovery operation.
Police believe they have found the remains of a missing 12-year-old girl who vanished after a suspected crocodile attack in the Northern Territory (stock image)
The young girl was last seen swimming at Mango Creek, in the remote Northern Territory community of Nganmarriyanga, 360km south-west of Darwin (a map is pictured)
‘They do an amazing piece of work, those officers are also divers and they do go into croc-infested waters as required,’ he said.
‘It’s probably safe to say we’re in the recovery stage.’
More to come
Police Minister Brent Potter has confirmed search efforts had shifted to a recovery operation