Crocodile stolen, set free after man breaks into Crocodylus Park in Darwin

By Annabel Bowles, ABC

The man carrying the young crocodile while taking selfies with it. Photo: SCREENSHOT / ABC

A young crocodile has gone missing at Darwin's Crocodylus Park after a man allegedly broke into the zoo overnight and took it from its enclosure.

CCTV captured on Wednesday night showed the man mishandling the saltwater crocodile while taking selfies, before dropping it on the ground and chasing after it.

The man also allegedly stole a ute and mowed down a flock of ducks as he sped out of the park.

Crocodylus Park manager Emily Moyes said the events were "really upsetting" for the park's employees.

"You can see this individual catch this crocodile and then they proceed to, it looks like, film themselves in a bit of a selfie video," she said.

"It would be very stressful for the crocodile.

"You could clearly see that this animal is trying to get away from this person and just try to seek some sort of safety, shelter."

The entrance to Crocodylus Park. Photo: Google Maps / Screenshot

Moyes said the 65-centimetre crocodile would "still have a decent bite on it" at that size.

"They are a smaller size, but obviously they're still a dangerous animal," she said.

"They can inflict quite an injury and along with that comes cause of infection."

Crocodylus Park head keeper Jessica Grills was the first to arrive at the park on Thursday morning to discover the crocodile was no longer in its enclosure.

"I take care of them and I don't ever want them to be put in that situation where they're too stressed, trying to get away from someone," she said.

"It's just not something you want to see."

Despite its ordeal, the keepers are confident the crocodile will eventually be found safe and well within the park's boundaries.

"They're pretty resilient animals, in the wild they can have severe injuries and survive just fine. So he will be fine," Moyes said.

"He's probably out hunting and enjoying himself, to be honest, and hopefully we can find him soon and get him back settled into his home."

Alongside their search for the missing saltie, Crocodylus Park is dealing with the alleged theft of one of its vehicles - and the loss of two native Burdekin ducks.

"We've had one car stolen and driven through our boundary fence as well as numerous damages to the rest of our cars," Ms Moyes said.

"Unfortunately, on this individual's departure they have mowed down this family of ducks.

"We've accounted most of them, but unfortunately we are missing two, so we do have concerns."

Moyes said some of the remaining cars were left with "serious damage".

"Like a lot of local business owners out there, you know, this isn't our first car theft," she said.

"It's a huge interruption for business and it can be really frustrating."

An NT Police spokesperson confirmed officers were investigating an "unlawful entry" at the park.

- ABC