An American tourist is feared to have been eaten alive by a shark after she vanished while diving off the coast of Indonesia. Colleen Monfore, 68, from South Dakota, went missing in the waters near Pulau Reong island, off the coast of Indonesia's Southwest Maluku Regency, on September 26.
She had been diving with six friends and a tour guide when a powerful current swept her away at around 9 a.m. local time. The guide was unable to bring Monfore back to the boat. Rescue teams conducted an eight-day search before calling it off on October 3 due to hazardous sea conditions and very negligible chances of finding Monfore alive.
Grim Discovery
On Sunday, a fisherman in the neighboring country of East Timor found human remains inside a shark. Though the remains have not yet been identified, officials in the Liquisa District reported that the female body was still dressed in a black wetsuit and appeared to be that of a Western woman resembling Monfore's description.
The fisherman who made the discovery recounted the unsettling moment when he came across the body.
"The shark was caught but it was not in normal health,' he recalled. 'I thought it had swallowed plastic or a fishing net. It was cut open to find the problem and inside there were the remains of a woman."
Authorities in East Timor have reached out to the Indonesian coast guard and have requested information from anyone with missing friends or family, as the area is a popular diving destination within Indonesian waters.
Too Dangerous
Muhammad Saleh Goro, Head of the Regional Technical Implementation Unit (UPTD) for the Management of the Alor Islands Marine Park and nearby waters, said, "We have coordinated with the Indonesian Embassy (KBRI) in Dili, and the KBRI has confirmed the truth of this information.
"The body of the woman was found in a shark in Timor Leste. It was not in Indonesian territory. We are now investigating the case further to confirm if they are the remains of anyone reported missing in Indonesia.
"From the diving suit worn by the victim, it is suspected that they were a diver. The results of the investigation will be published soon after more complete information is available. The anecdotal reports from Timor Leste are that the victim in the shark was foreign female."
Ipda Giovani BM Toffy, the police chief of Southwest Maluku where Monfore was first reported missing, said that the tour guide leading the diving group was the one who initially reported her disappearance.
"We coordinated with the Nabar Village Government to mobilize residents to help search the coast facing Reong Island and conduct searches around the waters of Reong Island using long boats or speed boats, but the victim has not been found."
Pulau Reong is a small island in Indonesia's Alor Archipelago, a region famous for its outstanding scuba diving.
Diving around Pulau Reong is gaining popularity thanks to its rich biodiversity, distinctive dive sites, pristine coral reefs, and a more peaceful atmosphere compared to nearby Thailand and the Philippines.
