Financial Times journalist killed in crocodile attack in Sri Lanka

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By BNO NEWS

A British journalist who worked for the Financial Times (FT) newspaper has been killed in a crocodile attack while on vacation in Sri Lanka, according to local officials and media reports.

The incident happened on Thursday afternoon when 24-year-old Paul McClean was taking surfing lessons at Elephant Rock near Arugam Bay, which is located on Sri Lanka’s southeast coast. He was staying there along with a number of friends.

A Scottish tourist told The Guardian newspaper that McClean had used a toilet next to a nearby lagoon and was grabbed by a crocodile while washing his hands. “People last saw his arms in the air in the water and then was grabbed under,” he was quoted as saying.

Police and soldiers were searching the area but, as of Friday morning, his body had not yet been found. “There is a river connected to Elephant Rock, and he went in the river. They can’t do anything because the river is deep and murky, it is not very clear,” the owner of a surf school told The Guardian.

McClean graduated from the University of Oxford in 2015 and he joined the Financial Times that same year, according to his LinkedIn profile. His work at the newspaper included coverage of Brexit, the European Union as a whole, consumer companies, and currency markets.

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