Remains of girl, 12, found after fatal crocodile attack in remote northern Australia

Police have found the remains of a 12-year-old girl who was snatched by a crocodile while swimming in a creek in remote northern Australia.

The remains were found in the river system near where the girl vanished at remote town of Palumpa , southwest of the Northern Territory capital Darwin, Police Senior Sergeant Erica Gibson said.

Injuries confirmed a crocodile attack, Sgt Gibson said.

“The recovery has been made. It was particularly gruesome and a sad, devastating outcome," she told reporters.

Efforts were continuing to trap the killer crocodile, she said.

Saltwater crocodiles are territorial and the killer is likely to remain in nearby waterways.

The girl's disappearance had triggered an intense 36-hour land, water and air search, with locals in the small indigenous community also volunteering to help with the search.

There are more than 100,000 crocodiles - which can grow up to 6 metres (20 ft) long - in the vast Northern Territory, though fatal attacks are relatively rare.

The saltwater crocodiles’ numbers were depleted by hunting, but have since bounced back since the practice was banned in the 1970s.

It is the first fatal crocodile attack in the Northern Territory since at least 2018, local media report.

Because saltwater crocodiles can live up to 70 years and grow throughout their lives, the proportion of large crocodiles is also rising.

A farmer survived a saltwater crocodile attack in November near the state’s Finniss River by biting it back in the eyelid to repel the attack.

In January, a nine-year-old boy was injured in a crocodile attack while swimming in Kakadu National Park.