Indonesia Crocodile Freed From Tyre After Five Years [pics]

Dozens of people drag 5.2-metre animal to shore and cut tyre from its neck after it was snared by bird-seller

A man removes binding from the crocodile’s jaws after freeing the animal from the tyre.

A wild crocodile in Indonesia that was trapped in a tyre for more than five years has been rescued, freed from its rubber ring and released back into the wild.

Conservation workers have been trying to lure the stricken saltwater crocodile from a river since 2016, after residents of Palu city on Sulawesi island spotted the animal with a motorbike tyre wrapped around its neck.

But it was a local resident who eventually snared the 5.2-metre (17ft) long reptile – regularly seen sunbathing in the Palu River in central Sulawesi – late on Monday.

Tili, a 34-year-old bird-seller, used chicken as bait and ropes to catch the animal at the end of what he said was a three-week rescue effort, before dozens of locals helped to drag the crocodile to shore and cut the tyre around its neck.

“I just wanted to help, I hate seeing animals trapped and suffering,” said Tili, who like many Indonesians uses only one name.

His first two attempts to rescue the animal failed because the ropes were not strong enough to contend with its weight, he said, before turning to nylon ropes used for tugging boats.

“I was already exhausted so I let them finish the rescue. The crocodile was unbelievably heavy, everybody was sweating and getting very tired.”

The animal was released back into the water after the rescue to relieved cheers from locals.