A crocodile fatally attacked a 13-year-old boy in Indonesia after he went into a river to get a soccer ball that had landed in the water while he was playing an evening match with his peers.
Muhammad Abidzhar, called Habi by his friends, went into the water close to the Kutai Lama harbor pier in Anggana District, Kutai Kartanegara Regency, on March 29, 2026, at approximately 5:30 p.m. local time. The kids had been swimming and tossing a ball when it fell into the crocodile-inhabited waterway. Abidzhar offered to get it, a choice that proved fatal.
His terrified friends heard only one scream before the boy disappeared below the dark surface, dragged down by a predator that had been lurking underneath. The children ran to their village to notify the authorities.
Meiry Sulindra, head of the Anggana Fire and Rescue Post, confirmed his team received the report just before maghrib prayers. “The incident happened around 5:30 p.m.,” Sulindra told reporters. Personnel from the Anggana Fire and Rescue unit immediately launched a search operation using rubber boats to sweep the area around the harbor pier.
The search went on through the night and into the next day, complicated by powerful currents and changing tides. Rescuers observed several crocodiles emerging during the operation, a stark indication of just how hazardous these waters had become.
Abidzhar’s body was found around 8 p.m. on Monday, March 30, floating roughly 1.6 kilometers downstream from where he had gone into the water. Rescue crews in the center of the river evacuated his remains and transported them directly to his family home.
An examination showed numerous injuries compatible with a crocodile attack, including wounds to the boy’s jaw, back, and the back of his head.
The incident underscores the increasing threat of human-crocodile conflicts in East Kalimantan and throughout Indonesia. The archipelago is home to four recognized crocodilian species, with the saltwater crocodile (Crocodylus porosus) responsible for the vast majority of attacks on humans. These apex predators can exceed six meters in length and are extremely territorial, thriving in the region’s rivers, mangrove forests, and coastal waters.
Indonesia leads the world in crocodile attacks by a staggering margin. Between 2015 and 2024, 1,167 people in Indonesia were attacked by crocodiles, resulting in 556 fatalities, far more than any other country, according to the CrocAttack database. East Kalimantan alone recorded 102 attacks with 54 deaths during that period, making it one of the most dangerous provinces in the nation.
Conservationists identify multiple factors pushing crocodiles nearer to human settlements. Overfishing has diminished the predators’ natural food sources, compelling them to hunt in areas they previously avoided. Habitat loss from the development of coastal areas into agricultural land has further reduced their territory. Palm oil plantation canals and other waterway modifications have created new crocodile habitats in populated areas.
Extensive tin mining operations—particularly in provinces like Bangka-Belitung—have also pushed villagers to encroach on crocodile habitats, creating dangerous proximity between people and the apex predators. The often-illegal tin mining in Bangka-Belitung has created numerous artificial bodies of water that serve as ideal habitat for crocodiles seeking new hunting grounds. Many residents in developing areas still rely on rivers for bathing, fishing, and daily activities, increasing their vulnerability to attacks.
This tragedy represents the most recent in a series of fatal crocodile attacks across Indonesia in recent months. In March 2025, 10-year-old Fikri Qurniawansyah was mauled to death while riding a makeshift canoe with friends in Riau province. The boy dangled his hand in the water before a crocodile clamped down on his arm and dragged him beneath the surface.
Search teams found and killed a crocodile believed responsible for that attack, but when they cut open its stomach, they found it empty. Fikri’s body was eventually discovered floating face-down in the river by a local farmer. A medical examination revealed multiple bruises consistent with a “death roll”—the violent spinning technique crocodiles use to subdue prey.
The rate of such incidents has generated concern among local authorities and wildlife experts. Crocodile populations in Indonesia have recovered since large-scale hunting was banned in the late 1990s, but the lack of warning systems and protective measures poses a significant challenge in minimizing conflicts.
The waterways surrounding Kutai Kartanegara Regency, where Abidzhar died, serve as critical habitat for these predators while simultaneously functioning as a lifeline for local communities who depend on them for transportation, fishing, and daily activities. This overlap creates inevitable conflict between humans and one of nature’s most formidable predators.
Local officials have advised residents to exercise extreme caution near waterways, particularly during dawn and dusk when crocodiles are most active. Authorities have asked the public to report any crocodile sightings immediately so preventive action can be taken.
Abidzhar’s death highlights the tragic cost of Indonesia’s ongoing human-wildlife conflict and the urgent need for coordinated efforts to protect both human communities and the crocodile populations that share their environment.