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A hefty 1.6-meter crocodile in a Sofia suburb is laying bare the weaknesses of Bulgaria’s administration.
The reptile — who goes by the name of “Crocky” — is being kept in a muddy puddle under a tarpaulin on scrubland near apartment blocks in the capital’s northeastern district of Botunets, and was discovered on an inspection for illegal tree felling.
Attempts to remove Crocky, however, degenerated into farce over Tuesday.
The frustrated local mayor, Lilia Donkova, complained she pushed for action from the environmental and veterinary authorities since last month without a response. “I am just lost for words. It means that I have the feeling that, in this country, there just aren’t any state institutions,” Donkova said in an interview with Bulgarian broadcaster NOVA.
It proved difficult to seize the crocodile, however, for bizarrely legalistic reasons. A man claiming to be his owner said he had the correct paperwork and added that Crocky was used for circus work. He also offered reassurances his animal did not bite.
It was an eventuality for which the authorities seemed unprepared despite the insistence from animal experts that Crocky needed be shifted to an environment better suited to regulating his body temperature. While Bulgarian summers are hot, winters are cold and snowy.
Still, the matter took an even more surreal turn on Wednesday, when a second attempt to remove the crocodile failed, with the supposed owner telling Bulgarian television he had bought the animal legally in the Black Sea port of Burgas.
Perhaps contradictorily, when pressed about the ownership, he also quipped: “It’s my mother’s!”
Television showed large huddles of locals and police at the scene on Tuesday but despite the growing interest, Crocky spent Tuesday night in his puddle.
Donkova condemned the failed efforts of Bulgaria’s food safety and environmental authorities and pledged to give moving Crocky another go on Wednesday.
“Today, we will continue!” she said.
A spokesperson for Sofia’s zoo declined to comment, while the Regional Inspectorate of Environment and Water did not respond to a request for a comment.
Donkova could not be reached for a comment.
