In a bizarre incident, villagers in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh tied a leash around a crocodile's neck and held it hostage for hours, refusing to return it to the forest department.
The villagers asked for INR 50,000 (about $680) from the state forest officials to release the crocodile, saying they had rescued it from a local pond, putting their own lives in jeopardy, according to Times of India.
The forest officials said it took hours of convincing and police threats of legal repercussions before the villagers set the reptile free.
“We got a call from Midania Village about a crocodile entering a village pond. We sent the team for the rescue operation but efforts had to be halted after sunset, as it had started turning dark,” Anil Patel, a forest department official told the daily about the Tuesday’s incident.
The following day, the officials were informed that locals have started the rescue operation as they couldn’t stay patient any more.
Later, the forest officials had to face a group of angry villagers who demanded money for the release of the croc as the locals explained they'd risked their lives in the rescue mission.