A 29-year-old tourist suffered a horrifying ordeal after mistaking a live crocodile for a statue and entering its enclosure to take selfies—only to be viciously attacked.
The incident occurred at a zoo in Barangay Laih, Siay town, Zamboanga Sibugay province, in the southern Philippines. The man reportedly climbed over a chain-link fence and waded into shallow water, assuming the 15-foot female crocodile, named Lalay, was a decorative figure.
Eyewitnesses screamed warnings as the man pulled out his phone for a selfie, but it was too late—Lalay suddenly lunged, clamping her powerful jaws onto his arm. Graphic footage shows the tourist screaming in agony as the reptile latched onto him, refusing to let go.
In a terrifying escalation, Lalay bit the man’s thigh and performed a death roll—an aggressive maneuver used by crocodiles to tear apart prey. The tourist was reportedly trapped in the enclosure for nearly 30 minutes, writhing in pain, until Lalay’s caretaker bravely intervened, striking the crocodile with a cement object to force her to release the man.
Emergency responders quickly wrapped the victim’s wounds and rushed him to the hospital, where he received over 50 stitches to his arm and thigh. Despite the severity of the attack, his leg was not broken.
Police Staff Sergeant Joel Sajolga confirmed the man had trespassed into the enclosure, believing the crocodile to be a fake display. “This kind of behavior is extremely dangerous,” he warned. “No one should ever cross into an animal enclosure. He’s lucky to be alive.”
The attack occurred at the Kabug Mangrove Park and Wetlands, where zoo staff were present but unable to prevent the breach. Witnesses reported the man had posed beside the motionless crocodile for photos, unaware of the danger.
Bystander Canete Jie said, “I can’t understand why he would do something so reckless, but I’m just glad he survived. He’s lucky the crocodile let go.”
