A missing 12-year-old boy is feared to be taken by a crocodile in Australia after he and his friends swam in a watering hole in the outback on Sunday. Rescue teams have cut open the stomachs of two crocodiles as they search for the missing unnamed boy.

The crocodiles that were killed were found near where the boy disappeared, and both had nothing in their stomachs that would lead the rescuers to the boy.

“One was 4.3 metres and one was 4.7 metres. Both of those crocodiles were shot and removed from the area,” police sergeant Stephen Constable told reporters of the horrific incident at the Mudginberri Billabong in the World Heritage-listed Kakadu National Park.

“Neither of them had anything in their stomachs, and we’re going to continue the search today,” he continued, adding that they have a helicopter flying to help them with the search, and would deploy three boats and two airboats in the water.

The boy’s friend, also 12, was bitten on both his arms by the crocodile while they were swimming. It is believed that the crocodile attacked the friend first, before turning on the missing boy.

The injured boy has received medical treatment for his wounds, which are being examined by experts to determine the size of the crocodile that has attacked them.

The Kakadu National Park is located in the Northern Territory, where crocodile population is the densest.

In August, a 26-year-old man was killed by a crocodile when he swam the Mary River, southeast of Darwin. According to thespec.com, the attack led indigenous elders to call for a cull of the reptiles, believing that the growing population of crocodiles in the area must be urgently addressed as it has becoming far too dangerous for the people already.