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NORTHERN TERRITORY NEWS (Darwin, Australia) 30 September 05 Diver sees mate taken by 5m croc (Greg McLean)
A 56-year-old man was taken by a 5m crocodile right in front of his diving partner's eyes yesterday. Police retrieved the body of the man -- believed to be a Territory-based professional diver -- after the man was taken while underwater with a friend about 11.30am off a remote stretch of NT coastline.
It is believed the crocodile dragged the man's body on to the beach before returning to the water.
Police were able to retrieve the body about 4.30pm.
The 56-year-old man and his companion were diving near Washon Head on Cobourg Peninsula when the saltie -- measuring up to 5m -- made its unprovoked attacked.
His friend surfaced and saw the crocodile before making a frantic phone call to police on a satellite phone about 11.30am.
The diving companion was able to mark the location where he saw his friend taken with an electronic positioning beacon and marker buoy.
Only his quick thinking enabled police to pinpoint the vicinity of the crocodile attack, Acting Superintendent Dean McMaster said.
Supt McMaster said police were yet to determine what they would do with the croc.
"(The man's) injuries were consistent with a crocodile attack," he said.
"We haven't done anything with the croc yet.
"Our priority was the recovery of the victim.
"A decision will be made at a later date about whether there will be an attempt to capture the croc -- there are several large crocs in the area and it is a difficult situation, as you can appreciate."
An autopsy on the victim's body will be conducted in Darwin today.
Police are yet to formally interview the deceased man's diving companion to determine the full circumstances of the attack and he has been offered counselling to help him come to terms with the ordeal.
http://www.ntnews.news.com.au/common/story_page/0,7034,16768198%5E13569,00.html

NEWS.COM.AU (Australia) 29 September 05 Second deadly attack in days
(AAP) A Darwin man was killed by a crocodile today, the second fatal attack in the Northern Territory in less than a week.
The body of the 56-year-old man was found close to where he disappeared while diving in a remote waters off Cobourg Peninsula, 200km north-east of Darwin.
The man's distraught diving companion, a 41-year-old New Zealand man, raised the alarm by satellite phone about 11.30am today.
He marked the exact location with an emergency beacon as he scrambled to get out of the water after spotting a large crocodile.
Police acting Superintendent Dean McMaster said the man's body might never have been recovered but for the rapid actions of his companion.
"His actions and quick thinking have made the search so much easier," he said.
The pair were diving together in Trepang Bay, about 15 nautical miles east of Cape Don.
"Obviously this person would be very distressed," acting Supt McMaster said.
"He was diving as a diving companion when his mate went missing.
"That must have been a very stressful time.
"He's managed to get out of the water into a boat, where he's placed an emergency locating beacon (in the location) and called police on a satellite phone."
It took authorities several hours to reach the area, and the man's body was found at 4.30pm.
Police said he had injuries consistent with a crocodile attack, but the cause of death would be confirmed by a post-mortem examination.
Police would offer counselling to the man, and officers involved in the search, before taking his official statement, he said.
"Our main concern has been finding the body of the victim and following up with the next of kin," acting Supt McMaster said.
The man's family in Darwin had been told of his death and his body would be returned there tonight, he said.
The incident comes just five days after British snorkeller Russell Harris, 37, was killed by a four metre saltwater crocodile while swimming off Groote Eylandt in the NT.
Authorities were still hunting that crocodile, after a search last night failed to find any crocodiles fitting the description of the reptile that mauled Mr Harris.
Mr Harris' death sparked renewed debate about whether limited safari hunting of some of the NT's dangerous crocodiles should be allowed.
The Federal Government is expected to soon make a decision on the NT government proposal, for trophy hunting of 25 crocodiles a year.
Crocodile numbers have exploded since the reptile was declared a protected animal and hunting was banned 33 years ago.
Acting Supt McMaster said it was not known if authorities would hunt the crocodile believed responsible for today's attack.
"It's a remote area," he said.
"There are a large number of crocodiles along the coastline in that area.
"I would be hard to pin the attack down to any specific crocodile."
But he warned people should not go into NT waterways, home to an estimated 75,000 saltwater crocodiles.
"It's been well-documented, the dangers of swimming or entering the water in the NT," acting Supt McMaster said.
"People that visit are made aware of the dangers of crocodiles."
http://www.news.com.au/story/0,10117,16762146-2,00.html?from=rss

THE AGE (Melbourne, Australia) 30 September 05 Croc attacks prompt trophy-hunting call
(AAP) The man killed by a crocodile in the Northern Territory — the second fatal attack in less than a week — has been identified by police.
Russell August Butel, 55, of Darwin, was taken by a five metre saltwater crocodile about 11.30am yesterday, only five days after British snorkeller Russell Harris, 37, was also killed by a crocodile in the NT.
Mr Butel and a companion were diving near Washon Head on the Cobourg Peninsula, about 150km north-east of Darwin, when the attack happened.
His distraught diving partner, a 41-year-old New Zealand man, raised the alarm by satellite phone about 11.30am yesterday.
He marked the exact location with an emergency beacon as he scrambled to get out of the water after spotting a large crocodile.
Mr Butel dived frequently in his role as an aquarium fish diver.
An autopsy on his body is being conducted in Darwin today.
The death of Mr Harris, who was taken by a four-metre saltwater crocodile while swimming off Groote Eylandt, prompted renewed debate about limited safari hunting of some of the NT's dangerous crocodiles.
The federal government is expected to soon make a decision on the NT government proposal for trophy hunting of 25 crocodiles a year.
Crocodile numbers have exploded since the reptile was declared a protected animal and hunting was banned 33 years ago.
Police acting Superintendent Dean McMaster said the man's body might never have been recovered but for the rapid actions of his companion.
"His actions and quick thinking have made the search so much easier," he said.
The pair were diving together in Trepang Bay, about 15 nautical miles east of Cape Don.
"Obviously this person would be very distressed," acting Supt McMaster said.
"He was diving as a diving companion when his mate went missing.
"That must have been a very stressful time.
"He's managed to get out of the water into a boat, where he's placed an emergency locating beacon (in the location) and called police on a satellite phone."
It took authorities several hours to reach the area, and the man's body was found at 4.30pm.
Police said he had injuries consistent with a crocodile attack, but the cause of death would be confirmed by a post-mortem examination.
Police would offer counselling to the man, and officers involved in the search, before taking his official statement, he said.
"Our main concern has been finding the body of the victim and following up with the next of kin," acting Supt McMaster said.
The man's family in Darwin had been told of his death and his body would be returned there tonight, he said.
The incident comes just five days after British snorkeller Russell Harris, 37, was killed by a four metre saltwater crocodile while swimming off Groote Eylandt in the NT.
Authorities were still hunting that crocodile, after a search last night failed to find any crocodiles fitting the description of the reptile that mauled Mr Harris.
Mr Harris' death sparked renewed debate about whether limited safari hunting of some of the NT's dangerous crocodiles should be allowed.
The federal government is expected to soon make a decision on the NT government proposal, for trophy hunting of 25 crocodiles a year.
Crocodile numbers have exploded since the reptile was declared a protected animal and hunting was banned 33 years ago.
Acting Supt McMaster said it was not known if authorities would hunt the crocodile believed responsible for today's attack.
"It's a remote area," he said.
"There are a large number of crocodiles along the coastline in that area.
"I would be hard to pin the attack down to any specific crocodile."
But he warned people should not go into NT waterways, home to an estimated 75,000 saltwater crocodiles.
"It's been well-documented, the dangers of swimming or entering the water in the NT," acting Supt McMaster said.
"People that visit are made aware of the dangers of crocodiles.
"That is an ever present danger."
Recent crocodile attacks in Australia
Sept 29, 2005 - NT. Darwin man killed by crocodile while diving off Coburg Peninsula.
Sept 2005 - NT. Briton Russell Harris killed by a 4m crocodile while snorkelling off the remote Groote Eylandt, in the Gulf of Carpentaria.
Aug 2005 - Qld. Fisherman Barry Jefferies killed when a crocodile grabbed his arm and pulled him from a canoe at Lakefield National Park, in Cape York.
Oct 2004 - Qld. Andrew Kerr, 34, injured when attacked in a tent at Bathurst Bay, east of Lakefield National Park, with Alicia Sorahan, 60, also injured after jumping on crocodile's back to ward it off.
Oct 2004 - NT. Teenager escapes from jaws of crocodile with only minor puncture wounds.
Oct 2004 - Qld. A 4m crocodile attacks a man sleeping in a tent on a beach at Cape Melville in far north Queensland.
Oct 2004 - Qld. A Barramundi fisherman has the tip of his index finger bitten off by a crocodile while trying to free it from a net on Nassau River on Cape York Peninsula.
April 2004 - Qld. An 11-year-old girl has her arm grabbed by a crocodile while swimming at Margaret Bay on Cape York Peninsula.
Dec 2003 - NT. Brett Mann, 22, killed after wading into the Finniss River, 80km from Darwin.
Nov 2003 - NT. A woman beats off a crocodile with a bag of mussels after it bit her on the back while she was wading across a creek on Melville Island.
Nov 2003 - NT. Teenager Manuel Gandigorrtij escapes from the jaws of a 3m crocodile when his 53-year-old aunt punched it in the nose at Jibalbal Outstation, in Arnhem Land.
Sept 2003 - NT. A tour guide suffers puncture wounds after being attacked by a 1.5m freshwater crocodile at a popular plunge pool in Kakadu National Park.
Sept 2003 - NT. A 10-year-old girl suffers cuts to her leg after being attacked by a 2m crocodile as she swims with friends in a billabong at the Aboriginal community at Patonga Airstrip in Kakadu National Park.
Oct 2002 - NT. German tourist Isabel von Jordan, 23, killed while swimming with other tourists at a croc-infested waterhole at Kakadu National Park.
Croc attacks prompt trophy-hunting call

COURIER MAIL (Brisbane, Australia) 01 October 05 Croc victim killed by a single bite to head (Nigel Adlam)
A man killed by a crocodile on Thursday died from a single bite to the head and probably did not feel a thing.
Russell Butel, 55, was probably close to the surface of the water when he was grabbed while diving on the Coburg Peninsula in the Northern Territory.
The sea-cucumber diver suffered a crushed skull and jaw from an animal with biting power of around three tonnes for every two and a half square centimetres. Scientists believe the jaws of saltwater crocodiles are more powerful than the most fearsome dinosaur, tyrannosaurus rex.
A Darwin crocodile expert said Mr Butel was "probably splashing about".
"The croc would have lined him up and gone underwater from 100-200m," the zoologist said.
"The animal may then have surfaced right next to him and attacked. It would have all been over in seconds."
The wildlife ranger who found Mr Butel's body said it was floating about 2km from the attack site.
Peter Fitzgerald said he had seen as many as 12 crocodiles at a time in the bay.
"The locals here are very reluctant to go near the water and are fairly crocodile-aware, which I hope everyone is after such an incident. It's just a sad event," he said.
Mr Butel was one of the Northern Territory's most experienced divers.
He was collecting fish and coral for his aquarium supply business near Vashon Head, north of Darwin, when the crocodile struck.
Colleagues said Mr Butel was a dedicated diver who was influential within the industry.
"He was committed to developing the industry and had worked for it for a long time," aquarium fishery committee chairman Brian Koennecke said.
"Russell will be greatly missed by all of us and everyone involved in diving and fishing in the Territory."
He was the second man to be killed by a crocodile in the Territory in five days.
Mine superintendent Russell Harris, 37, was killed while snorkelling at Groote Eylandt last Sunday.
Mr Butel's wife Loraine was yesterday being comforted by her daughter Michelle.
A friend said she was "traumatised".
Mr Butel's diving partner, Nick Sherwood, who was in a dinghy during the attack, was still in shock.
Police said they would not shoot the 4m crocodile.
Divers said Mr Butel was working where there was a high risk of attack.
But friends said he knew the risks and accepted them as an occupational hazard.
Most crocodile attacks occur between late September and January when crocodiles are hungry after the dry season and are preparing to breed.
Rising temperatures and humidity make them more active.
Three recent attacks – two in the Northern Territory and one in north Queensland last month – have sparked calls for a cull of the animals.
Croc victim killed by a single bite to head