Reward of $10,000 offered for suspected serial crocodile killer in Queensland
July 19, 2023
By Khaled Al Khawaldeh
A reward of $10,000 has been offered in Queensland as the hunt for a suspected serial crocodile killer intensifies in the state’s far north.
The money was raised by members of the community after two crocodiles were found decapitated earlier this year, including a 40-year-old saltwater croc named Lizzie.
Crime Stoppers believes both crocodiles were killed by a person or people but so far investigations have been unsuccessful.
“We’re all hopeful this reward will encourage individuals that may know something about these matters to share it anonymously with Crime Stoppers,” David Hansen, chief executive of Crime Stoppers Queensland, said.
Amanda French, co-founder of Community Representation of Crocodiles, said the funds for the reward were raised overnight after the death of Lizzie, a crocodile that was well known to locals in the Daintree.
“We put together a social media post that took off. Once the first donation came through, it created a domino effect,” she said.
“We’re thrilled to see the community taking wildlife crime seriously.”
Investigations into the killings have intensified after an anonymous phone call was made to a tour operator by a man who referred to himself as the “Apex predator”. The caller claimed responsibility for Lizzie’s death and an earlier incident in Cow Bay where another crocodile was found decapitated.
Conservationists hope the culprit or culprits will be found and held responsible to stop the spread of violence against crocodiles.
“It needs to be punished. It’s not something that you can get away with,” the crocodile researcher Mick Bender said.
“People need to know that there’s massive fines and that they are a protected species. I think they need to be doing a lot more as far as educating the public goes and making it more clear that you won’t get away with this.”
The attacks on wildlife come at a time of rising tensions in Queensland over the increasing crocodile populations. There has been a recent spate of attacks, including the death of a local fisher, whose remains were found inside a crocodile in May.
There are now an estimated 20,000 to 30,000 crocodiles in Queensland, prompting the Katter Australia party to call for a cull of the species, but crocodiles are still listed as vulnerable.
Since 1985 there have been 47 crocodile attacks on people in north Queensland, and their frequency has increased.
The number of crocodile sightings has also been on the rise, with crocodiles spotted as far south as Maryborough and Hervey Bay, outside what is traditionally considered croc country.
But after an extensive survey in 2021, the department said it was unlikely numbers would ever reach the level of those in the Northern Territory due to “limited amount of suitable nesting habitat”.
The same survey found no evidence of a “southward expansion” or a change in “spatial distribution”.