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CROCODILE

Swedish croc find leaves owner with huge bill

The former owner of a two-metre long crocodile found in a Swedish greenhouse last October has refused to pay the massive transport costs incurred when the reptile was moved to a zoo in the UK, arguing that he wanted his pet put down.

Swedish croc find leaves owner with huge bill

The Malmö resident has been left with a 23,500 kronor ($3,500) bill after police removed the reptile after a raid in October 2013. According to Swedish animal protection legislation an owner is responsible for the costs of taking animals in protective care.

"He only wanted to pay for its killing," said Marie-Louise Törnblad at Malmö police to the local Sydsvenskan daily.

The crocodile turned up in a house in Malmö in October during a police raid where the owner was suspected of receiving stolen goods. But it wasn't until officers reached the greenhouse that the unusual haul was uncovered.

The two-metre long crocodile, alive and apparently well, was found inside the greenhouse. While police were unable or perhaps unwilling to remove the giant reptile, expert veterinarians were called in to assess the situation.

Experts identified the scaly beast as a Nile crocodile. The wife of the suspect claimed at the time that he had been given the crocodile as a present.

SEE ALSO: Think the Nile crocodile is bad? Check out Sweden's ten most dangerous animals

The 40-year-old homeowner was then detained by police, who also found a dead crocodile frozen in a freezer on the property.

While the man had come to refer to his toothy companion as "Kaj", after a veterinary inspection is was established by vets that the reptile was in fact a female and was therefore renamed "Kajsa".

Kajsa now resides in the Crocodiles of the World Foundation zoo in the UK after a long search for a suitable home finally paid off in February.

When not in Swedish greenhouses or British zoos, the Nile crocodile is most usually found in sub-Saharan Africa, where it can grow to be up to six metres long. The species, which has been listed by animal protection agency CITES as "threatened with extinction", is the second largest reptile in the world after the saltwater crocodile.

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