MIRI, July 3 — A fisherman looking for crabs was horrified when he saw a crocodile drag the almost-decomposed body of a man in Sungai Pabong here yesterday.

The fisherman, who was in a boat with his younger brother at about noon, attempted to approach the crocodile in the hope of freeing the body from the jaws of the reptile but could only watch helplessly as the animal dragged it away, Miri District Police chief ACP Lim Meng Seah said today.

However, the fisherman enlisted the help of another fisherman and found the crocodile with the partly-devoured body in Sungai Suai at 1.30pm, he said in a statement.

Lim said the fishermen chased away the crocodile and tied the remaining lower part of the body with a rope and pulled it towards the riverbank near the Suai Bridge.

"The police carried out a preliminary inspection at the riverbank but were unable to ascertain the man’s identity as no identification document was on the body,” he said.

He said the police found no injuries on the body, clad in a pair of black trousers and black belt, indicating any element of a crime.

There were bite marks believed to be the crocodile’s on the abdomen and legs, he said, adding that the remains were sent to the Miri Hospital for a post-mortem.

Lim said a family which had reported a missing male relative was unable to identify the body because they did not know whether their next-of-kin had worn that particular trousers and belt.

An image of a body floating in Sungai Suai went viral on social media last night, raising speculation as to the cause of the man’s death. — Bernama