A crocodile has killed a pastor who was baptising people in a lake in southern Ethiopia.
Docho Eshete, a Protestant pastor, was conducting the ceremony for about 80 people on Sunday, June 3, at Lake Abaya in Arba Minch town’s Merkeb Tabya district.
According to residents, and police who attended the scene, a crocodile leapt from the water during the baptism and attacked 45-year-old Eshete.
The pastor died after being bitten on his legs, back and hands.
According to the BBC, Ketema Kairo, who witnessed the attack, said:
He baptised the first person and he passed on to another one. All of a sudden, a crocodile jumped out of the lake and grabbed the pastor.
A local policeman said despite valiant efforts from residents and nearby fishermen, pastor Docho could not be saved.
Fishing nets were reportedly used to prevent the crocodile from dragging the pastor’s body into the lake and the crocodile is said to have escaped without capture.
Lake Abaya is Ethiopia’s second largest lake and houses a large number of crocodiles, which are particularly aggressive towards people and animals, as the lake has few fish, their preferred food.
Earlier this year, the search for a missing palm oil plantation worker in Borneo ended under horrific circumstances after his arm and leg were discovered inside the stomach of a 20ft crocodile.
The rest of 36-year-old Andi Aso Erang’s remains were found floating in the waters of a separate part of the Kalimantan based river.
Police officers shot and killed the crocodile close to the place where Andi had disappeared. His motorbike and sandals had been spotted close to the scene.
The gruesome discovery of the human limbs was made after cutting open the belly of the animal. Police suspect Andi had been mauled to death by the enormous creature.
This tragic incident is not the only one to occur within the region, where there are several species of deadly crocodiles.
On February 24, a 66-year-old woman from the Indonesian island of Sumatra was killed by a gigantic crocodile, which had devoured the lower part of her body as well as both her hands.
Those searching for the unnamed woman grew suspicious after noting a huge crocodile close to a boat which contained her belongings. Her partially eaten remains were later found close to the river’s edge.
In May 2017, Jonathon Mthethwa of the Saint of the Last Days Church was attempting to demonstrate his ability to walk on water when he died.
Pastor Mthethwa chose to show off his biblical super powers on what’s known as ‘Crocodile River’.
According to The Nigerian Daily Post the pastor drowned as he attempted to cross the river and was eventually seen being eaten by three crocodiles.
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Charlie Cocksedge is a journalist and sub-editor at UNILAD. He graduated from the University of Manchester with an MA in Creative Writing, where he learnt how to write in the third person, before getting his NCTJ. His work has also appeared in such places as The Guardian, PN Review and the bin.