Authorities Investigating Guy Filmed Riding Crocodile

Niels Jensen used a dead wallaby as bait
By Evann Gastaldo,  Newser Staff
Posted Sep 26, 2018 2:07 PM CDT

Authorities in Australia are investigating after a self-described Danish hunter and adventurer was filmed sitting atop a crocodile in a wildlife park. Niels Jensen, who lives in Australia's Northern Territory and says he works as a hunting guide, is seen in the video coaxing the saltwater croc toward him using a dead wallaby as bait, ABC reports. When the crocodile grabs the wallaby and starts eating it, Jensen straddles the croc so a friend can film the scene. After the video was posted to Instagram over the weekend, the Northern Territory Department of Tourism and Culture said it was looking into the matter, and that "heavy penalties" might apply.

Specifically, authorities are investigating whether the crocodile was wild or a pet, and they are also probing the wallaby Jensen used, noting that it is "a protected species" and thus illegal to interfere with. "Saltwater crocodiles are large and potentially dangerous animals and we encourage everyone to be crocwise at all times," says a director with the department. "The behavior shown in this video is dangerous and reckless and we do not support this type of interaction with crocodiles." News.com.au says the crocodile in question weighs more than 1400 pounds and is more than 15 feet long, and notes that Jensen, who has a wildlife management degree, has said that friends call him the "Danish Crocodile Dundee." (More strange stuff stories.)

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