Texas hunter Garrett Wales slammed for 'disgusting' posts about killing 'monster' crocodile weighing 1,000 pounds
Warning: This story contains images of animal cruelty and can be distressing to see, readers' discretion is advised
ZIMBABWE, AFRICA: Garrett Wales of Brock, Texas was on a hunting trip to Zimbabwe when he made the most 'insane' kill in his life. He was on a hunting trip in the Savé Valley of Zimbabwe when his team of trackers were informed by some local villagers of a crocodile in a nearby irrigation pond. After tracking down the 15-foot 'monster' crocodile, Wales shot it dead. The hunter and his team has now claimed to have killed the Nile crocodile, which he also referred to as a 'legend' and a "man-eating dinosaur."
Wales had posted pictures of his giant kill amid his 10-day hunting expedition at the Humani Ranch. However, after the intense backlash he received on social media after displaying the dead crocodile in a most disturbing fashion, he was forced to delete his Facebook and Instagram accounts. Nile crocodiles are found in Madagascar, tropical and southern Africa, and they live in swamps, marshes, rivers, and estuaries. Wales' 'monster' croc was found in an irrigation pond. Now before you get confused, crocodiles are usually found in saltwater habitats, while alligators prefer freshwater areas. Florida, often reports instances of alligator attacks in its residential community and things often turn deadly. But in the case of the crocodile in the Zimbabwe local village, there was no proof that it had killed someone.
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Daily Star quoted Wales as saying: “As we were getting ready to head out, they had been talking to some other locals in the village. They came back and said ‘hey, these guys are saying there’s this crocodile out in an irrigation pond’. Now, when we say irrigation pond, it’s full of vegetation. There was this legend of this croc that lived there, but no one we knew had actually seen it."
Wales had said in a since-deleted Facebook post that the huge predator threatened villagers and that he had chosen to pursue it despite the lack of any supporting documentation on the off chance that it was genuine. He even mentioned that the residents in the area continued to get water and take baths despite the rumors about the 'man-eating' crocodile in the pond. The hunter tried to lure his mysterious target with some bait, but then the next day, he and his team found the bait untouched. Suddenly, Wales happened to glimpse the beast lurking among the reeds. “This thing was sunning in the reeds. He lays eyes on it right before it slides back into the water. I didn’t see it but he confirmed the crocodile was a monster," he stated describing his first encounter with his soon-to-be kill.
He and his team pursued the crocodile for five days and even watched it escape into the water, according to Field and Stream. The "monster" was discovered on the fifth day after they made the decision to do one more lap around the pond. "Lo and behold, we come around the corner and were expecting to maybe see him in the reeds, but he was on our side of the bank just 5 to 7 yards from us," Wales said. Not wanting to miss his elusive target he shot it dead at point blank range with a.33 Nosler rifle.
The hunter stated it required the strength of nine guys to even move the crocodile as it weighed over 1,000 pounds (71 stone). “I’ve hunted all my life and I’ve never experienced anything like it. It was as insane as it gets in the hunting world," he shared about his experience.
He had posted several images of the creature and some of them showed it hanging from a hook of sorts dwarfing two men posing beside it. While posting images of the humongous crocodile on Instagram, Wales received mixed reactions from the users, some said he was brave for killing the animal and saving the villagers from danger, while others slammed his act of killing the crocodile as 'disgusting'. One wrote, "Way to go bro. You've proven that you have a lot more money than you do hunting skills. I have ZERO problems with people hunting for food and/or conservation but there's no chance this gigantic, ancient croc would have been harvested for either valid reason. Just so completely unnecessary, but glad you got your selfie to post on the internet with it." One user taunted the act and said, "Find something rare and amazing and kill it." Another social media user, who said he supported hunting wrote: "Hate to see it. And no, before the dumbass comments…I hunt and obviously support hunting. Just hate to see an animal that’s been around for probably 80 years get shot. Nothing against the guy tho."