Mpho Mugwena, a 12-year-old boy was attacked and eaten alive by a crocodile as his terrified friends watched at a South African swimming hole Saturday.
Mugwena, a resident of the nearby rural village of Tshivhilwi, was last seen alive as he was dragged underwater in the Mutshindudi River. The boy's friends scrambled out of the water and frantically called for help, but there was no trace of the boy by the time police arrived at the scene, according to media reports.
"The boy went to fetch water in the river with two friends of the same age and, as it was hot, they got into the river for a swim where the crocodile caught him," Limpopo police spokesperson Mohale Ramatseba told reporters. "There was apparently a huge struggle and then the boy disappeared."
Nile Crocodiles native to the region can grow as long as 20 feet and weigh as much as three quarters of a ton.
Though accurate numbers are hard to come by, as many as 200 people may die each year in attacks by the animal, according to National Geographic.
Police have not been able to conduct searches in the crocodile-infested waters to attempt to retrieve the boy's body.
"When police divers assessed the situation, it was found to be too dangerous for them because of the presence of crocodiles," Ramatseba said, the African Eye reported.
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