Teen Admits He Jumped Into Crocodile-Infested River To Impress Girl

A lot of guys make bad choices to show off for girls, but those choices don’t usually involve giant reptiles.

“Holy crap, I’m gone for sure” was all Australian backpacker Lee De Paauw could think, he said, when he found himself wrestling with a crocodile after he jumped into a river to impress a woman.

De Paauw described battling with the beast during the early hours of Sunday morning.

“At that point, I punched it in the snout. The second hit, I got it straight in the eye and then it let go ,” he told Australia’s 9News.

“It all happened very fast, pretty much as soon as he jumped in, there was splashing and screaming ,” Sophie Patterson, who De Paauw is dating, told Queensland’s Courier-Mail newspaper.

The teen escaped, but not without extensive injuries to his arm.

“You’ve seen Jaws,” Patterson said, describing the scene at the Johnstone River at Innisfail, Queensland. “There was a lot of blood. A lot of bone. It was just pretty horrendous.”

Even after the traumatic experience, De Paauw appears to still be smitten with Patterson. He says they plan to see a movie together, once he’s released from the hospital.

“She’s beautiful, caring and kind. I didn’t know there was a croc there,” he said. “I just done it for Sophie.”

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