The orthopaedic device was discovered inside 4.7m animal that died in central Queensland last month

This article is more than 1 year old

This article is more than 1 year old

An orthopaedic plate found in the stomach of a Queensland crocodile could possibly bring closure to the family of a missing person.

The plate, with six stainless steel screws, was inside the 4.7-metre MJ, who died a month ago after a fight with another large crocodile at Koorana Crocodile Farm near Rockhampton.

Facebook Twitter Pinterest The metal plate among rocks MJ swallowed to help grind up his food. Photograph: Koorana Crocodile Farm

Farm workers who cut open his gut to try to establish a cause of death found the approximately 10cm-long metal object.

They have been told the Swiss-made plate is “quite an old model”, said the farm manager, John Lever, but an identification code has been worn off owing to acidity in the animal’s stomach.

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“It could have been used in a pet or in human surgery, we don’t know,” Lever told Australian Associated Press. “It could have been in the crocodile’s stomach for 45, 50 years.”

Staff have been discussing the discovery with social media users and doctors but police are not yet involved.

The croc had been at the farm about six years after being bought from another farm in north Queensland, Lever said.

Inquiries about its habitat in the wild are being made with the original farm.

Lever said his instinct was the plate had belonged to a human.

“That’d be our desire – if we can help solve a cold case,” he said. “If we could put some minds at rest, it would be absolutely delightful.”