MY SNAP DECISION
Accused says he wanted to trap suburb’s croc
WHITE Rock man Jamie Charlton (left) says he just wants to save kids in his suburb from being eaten by a giant crocodile.
Mr Charlton is accused of feeding wallaby carcasses to a croc in a creek near his unit (right) but has defended himself on social media claiming he was trying to catch the reptile which authorities had failed to do.
“Take my car take my house take my money but I will not let that f-ing crock (sic) take mine or someone’s kids,” he wrote
A WHITE Rock man accused of using wallaby carcasses to feed a crocodile in a suburban creek claims he was only trying to protect the local children from the large animal.
Jamie Charlton’s unit backs onto Chinaman’s Creek where reports of a crocodile measuring more than four metres long have been circling for weeks.
The 34-year-old’s Atlantic Cl neighbours said yesterday the murky waterway is a popular fishing and swimming spot for local children.
Mr Charlton, whose Facebook profile picture features him in a swimming pool lying on an inflatable crocodile, is facing a significant fine after being charged by Cairns detectives for taking a protected animal in relation to the wallabies.
He has taken to social media to defend his actions, claiming the wallabies were al- ready dead after being killed by wild dogs when he used them to bait a hook.
He said he had called authorities asking for the crocodile to be caught.
Mr Charlton said he was trying to do the job for them after they had previously failed.
Police allege he was successful with the crocodile caught on the hook, but it managed to free itself and swim away.
“Look, get it right, no one has been feeding it,” he wrote.
“I’m doing the f-----g familys (sic) around here a favour so some poor kids don’t get Eaton (sic), so f--- u all.
“Take my car take my house take my money but I will not let that f-----g crock (sic) take mine or someone’s kids.”
Mr Charlton also claimed a ranger showed up one night last week with a trap, but he told him it was too small for the animal and the ranger “got no idea”.
The croc has been labelled a problem animal and targeted for removal by the Department of Environment and Science with a spokeswoman confirming yesterday it was yet to be caught.
A woman who lives in the street, who did not want to be named, claimed the croc had been venturing closer to homes only about 50m from the creek.
“The rangers were rung up about three months ago about it, and they did nothing about it, and now the croc’s come back,” she said.
“It’s coming closer and closer. It’s getting braver.
“There’s kids that swim in the creek. Kids from White Rock school are down there all the time. “Something needs to be done about it. (The croc) needs to be removed.”