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NEW DELHI – Villagers in North India were initially alarmed when they found a crocodile lurking in the local pond. But then they hatched a plan: to demand a ransom.
The six-foot reptile from a nearby nature reserve appeared in the village of Midania in the impoverished state of Uttar Pradesh after monsoon floods on Tuesday, authorities said.
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Anil Patel, an official responsible for the buffer zone around the Dudhwa Tiger Reserve, told AFP that locals caught the crocodile and then demanded 50,000 rupees (almost $ 700) to return it.
“It took us hours to convince them with the help of the police and local authorities to release the crocodile,” Patel said.
Villagers were also threatened with legal action, and officials explained that they risked being imprisoned for up to seven years.
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The crocodile, Patel said, is free now. “We released him in the Ghagra River the same day.”
“They had no idea that the crocodile was an animal protected by the Wildlife Protection Act. It is important for us to educate more people about wildlife,” he added.
