Reported “crocodile sighting” causes confusion in Bavaria

Police were called to a lake in Pfaffenhofen, northern Bavaria, after locals reported seeing a crocodile circling in the water.

Locals scared away by “crocodile” in German lake

A woman in Pfaffenhofen, northern Bavaria, called the police this week after she believed she had seen a crocodile circling in the water. The woman claimed that she had watched the crocodile’s head moving through the water as it circled a jetty.

Once police arrived at the scene, they also saw the crocodile head floating in the water. After throwing logs in the direction of the "animal", they found that it never moved.

The police officers brought the object closer to the banks of the lake and eventually realised that it was not a crocodile but a 30-centimetre-long plastic crocodile head.

Police appeal to potential pranksters

Once they had confirmed that the crocodile was not real, they secured the plastic head in order to avoid further panic or call-outs. 

According to tabloid newspaper Bild, Pfaffenhofen police are appealing to anyone who knows how the plastic crocodile head ended up in the lake to contact them.