Police believe they have found the remains of a missing 12-year-old girl who vanished after a suspected crocodile attack almost 48 hours ago.
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.
Northern Territory Police Senior Sergeant Erica Gibson said the 12-year-old had reportedly been attacked by a crocodile.
‘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 authorised to remove the crocodile from the area in order to safely continue their search.
Police Minister Brent Potter on Wednesday confirmed that search efforts had shifted to a recovery mission.
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.’
Peppimenarti Police along with the help of community members are investigating the incident and have yet to find the child.
Nganmarriyanga, formerly known as Palumpa, is a remote Aboriginal community in the Daly River region of the Northern Territory.
It is situated about 360km south-west of Darwin between the communities of Peppimenarti and Wadeye.
The community hasn’t been rocked by a crocodile attack since 2018 when a ranger was killed while in Gangan community.
Almost a decade earlier, a 11-year-old girl is believed to have been attacked by a crocodile in rural Darwin in 2009 – with her remains found after a 12-hour search.
Police Minister Brent Potter has confirmed search efforts had shifted to a recovery operation