update
The man arrested on suspicion of attempted murder after throwing a three-year-old boy into a crocodile enclosure has been released on bail. Police said the 30-year-old Norfolk man was “unable to be interviewed”.
Journalist at HLN
Source: The Times, Sky News
The three-year-old boy remains in Addenbrooke’s Hospital in Cambridge. He is seriously injured, but his condition is stable. The police assume that the suspect did not know the child. He must report to the police again on September 18. Nothing is known about a possible motive at the moment.
The incident happened on Thursday afternoon at Johnsons Zoo in Huntingdon, Cambridgeshire, England. Emergency services were called around 1:24 p.m. According to the British newspaper ‘The Telegraph’, several crocodiles were present when the boy was thrown into the enclosure. He suffered serious injuries.
According to British media, Tracey Johnson, the wife of the zoo owner, jumped into the crocodile enclosure to save the injured child.
Child four 15 feet down
Johnsons of Old Hurst is a family business that combines a farm with a butcher’s shop, farm shop, tea room, steakhouse and a zoo.
The website even invites visitors to feed crocodiles. For 80 pounds, the equivalent of about 95 euros, visitors can view and feed the reptiles up close for half an hour. The saltwater crocodiles live in a converted cattle shed, where visitors can look out over large water basins among tropical plants via elevated metal walkways.
A man who recently visited the park with his children described the stay in British media as “a kind of elevated tree house”. “You’re looking straight down at the crocodiles. It’s about 4.5 meters high,” he says.
Zoo closed today
The zoo responded with a brief statement on Thursday. “Our thoughts and prayers are with the boy and his family. Out of respect for them, the tropical animal enclosure will remain closed until further notice. The rest of the park will remain open.”
According to local media, the zoo has an excellent reputation. The owners are known as “respected members of the community”.