Crocodile attacks boy swimming in Australian river

Police are searching for a nine-year-old boy who was taken by a crocodile while swimming in a river in northern Australia.

The boy was grabbed by the animal as he swam with a group of people at Port Bradshaw, Northern Territory, on Saturday.

Although a group of adults tried to kill the 13ft-long crocodile with spears, it dragged the boy into deeper water and he has not been seen since.

The animal was spotted later on Saturday, but armed search parties were unable to shoot it dead.

“The crocodile was sighted a number of other times and two shots were fired in an attempt to kill it,” Sergeant Alex Brennan of Nhulunbuy police told the Northern Territory News. “The crocodile’s gone underwater and hasn’t been seen since.”