News / National
Herdboy dies in crocodile attack
26 Feb 2015 at 09:15hrs | Views
A 17-year-old herdboy from rural Masvingo was killed by a crocodile while on a fishing expedition along Mutirikwi River and had some of his body parts eaten.
The deceased has been identified as Shingirirai Mangwengwe of Mangare Village under Chief Musara.Shingirirai's death occurred against a background of increasing reports of crocodiles attacking villagers' livestock.
Acting Masvingo police spokesperson, Assistant Inspector Kudakwashe Dehwa could neither confirm nor deny the incident.
Chief Musara, however, confirmed the incident which happened on Tuesday at around 4PM.
He said the juvenile's lifeless body was discovered by villagers along the bank of Mutirikwi River. The chief said all the boy's limbs were missing.
"Shingirirai was herding cattle with another 12-year-old boy. He then excused himself indicating that he wanted to catch fish using nets at the nearby Mutirikwi River. He is said to have attempted to cross the river but before getting into the water, a crocodile sprung out and snatched him. The crocodile dragged Shingirirai into the water . His body was discovered with all legs and hands missing," said Chief Musara.
Shingirirai, originally of Bikita's Chief Mukanganwi area was employed by a family in Mangare Village as a herdboy.
Village head Davison Mangare said: "Both hands were chewed up to shoulder level while legs were devoured up to waist level. The attack happened so fast that even Shingirirai's colleague who was nearby didn't have time to scream to raise alarm. There were some fishermen on the other end of the river. One of them tried to scare away the crocodile by throwing stones at it to no avail."
One of the fishermen rushed to report the incident to the village head who in turn sent his subjects to the police to make a formal report.
Police arrived at the scene and took the body to Masvingo Provincial Hospital for a post mortem.
Headman Mangare said reports of crocodile attacks were on the increase in the village.He appealed to the National Parks and Wildlife Management Authority to dispatch a team and save the villagers from the menace.
"We've received a number of reports where crocodiles attacked people and killed livestock. We're appealing to National Parks and Wildlife Management Authority to assist our people before they lose all livestock," he said.
Late last year, a 16 year-old girl from Mwenezi area was fatally attacked by a crocodile while catching fish at a local river.
The deceased has been identified as Shingirirai Mangwengwe of Mangare Village under Chief Musara.Shingirirai's death occurred against a background of increasing reports of crocodiles attacking villagers' livestock.
Acting Masvingo police spokesperson, Assistant Inspector Kudakwashe Dehwa could neither confirm nor deny the incident.
Chief Musara, however, confirmed the incident which happened on Tuesday at around 4PM.
He said the juvenile's lifeless body was discovered by villagers along the bank of Mutirikwi River. The chief said all the boy's limbs were missing.
"Shingirirai was herding cattle with another 12-year-old boy. He then excused himself indicating that he wanted to catch fish using nets at the nearby Mutirikwi River. He is said to have attempted to cross the river but before getting into the water, a crocodile sprung out and snatched him. The crocodile dragged Shingirirai into the water . His body was discovered with all legs and hands missing," said Chief Musara.
Shingirirai, originally of Bikita's Chief Mukanganwi area was employed by a family in Mangare Village as a herdboy.
Village head Davison Mangare said: "Both hands were chewed up to shoulder level while legs were devoured up to waist level. The attack happened so fast that even Shingirirai's colleague who was nearby didn't have time to scream to raise alarm. There were some fishermen on the other end of the river. One of them tried to scare away the crocodile by throwing stones at it to no avail."
One of the fishermen rushed to report the incident to the village head who in turn sent his subjects to the police to make a formal report.
Police arrived at the scene and took the body to Masvingo Provincial Hospital for a post mortem.
Headman Mangare said reports of crocodile attacks were on the increase in the village.He appealed to the National Parks and Wildlife Management Authority to dispatch a team and save the villagers from the menace.
"We've received a number of reports where crocodiles attacked people and killed livestock. We're appealing to National Parks and Wildlife Management Authority to assist our people before they lose all livestock," he said.
Late last year, a 16 year-old girl from Mwenezi area was fatally attacked by a crocodile while catching fish at a local river.
Source - chronicle
