Girl who went missing while bathing: Body parts found inside crocodile

 Body parts of the girl who went missing while bathing in the Mulannatuwa Wewa in Galnewa were found inside the body of the crocodile, believed to have swallowed her, when residents killed the amphibious reptile and dissected its body on April 29 afternoon.

Gimhani Anushka

S. M. Gimhani Anushika, 13, of no 246, Lolugaswewa, Galnewa, a Grade 7 student of Galnewa Madya Vidyalaya, became a prey of a crocodile while she was bathing in the Mulannatuwa Wewa with her parents and several children in the neighbourhood on April 27 night.

Her mother had said that she went missing while bathing in the Wewa and that she saw bubbles erupting from the water, and her pair of slippers floating afterward.

A two-day joint search conducted by the Navy, Police life-saving unit and civil defence personnel drew a blank.

A group of residents who continued the search had seen a crocodile resting on the sluice of the Wewa and killed it on April 28 night by hitting it with clubs. Thereafter, they had dissected the reptile’s body and found human body parts inside its stomach.

Galnewa Police, summoned to the scene, put up a security cordon at the spot with curious crowds thronging to have a glimpse of the reptile.

An inquirer into sudden deaths and a JMO summoned to the scene could not conduct the inquest due to the presence of a large crowd. The carcass of the crocodile was removed to the Galnewa Hospital morgue where the postmortem was held.

Human body parts found inside the crocodile’s body included a part of a skull, an upper pallet with teeth, a hand and leg, and several other body parts which Gimhani Anushika's parents identified as those of their daughter.

Gimhani's mother R. M. Nilanthi Ratnayake, who is nine months pregnant, fell unconscious opposite the hospital morgue on seeing her daughter’s body parts. She was soon admitted to hospital for treatment. The body parts were referred to the Anurdhapura JMO for a DNA test to further establish that they belonged to Gimhani. A postmortem examination was also due to be held on the crocodile’s body.