Killer three-metre saltwater crocodile which devoured a dog breaks into a suburban backyard filled with children after sneaking under the fence

A three-metre saltwater crocodile has been caught crawling under fences and breaking into suburban backyards before devouring a stray dog.

Luke Newton was enjoying a coffee on Sunday morning in his hometown of Gunbalanya, east of Darwin in the Northern Territory, when he was called to catch the giant reptile from a private property.

Though he initially assumed it was a smaller crocodile, Mr Newtown arrived to find the beast frantically trying to escape the scene of excited children and dogs under a wire fence, the NT News reported.

Mr Newtown arrived to find the enormous beast frantically trying to escape the scene of excited children and dogs under a wire fence

It took the crocodile catcher and three eager volunteers about an hour and a half to ensnare the reptile, wind tape around its mouth and claws for protection, and drop it off at a billabong.

Mr Newton said it looked healthy and fully, suggesting it may have eaten a stray dog on its journey through the town.

'It's a danger to the community … you have camp dogs and kids everywhere it's not ideal to have a three-metre croc running around,' he told the publication.

Despite its great length, Mr Newton said the crocodile was no larger than others caught around the area.

'This time of year we get a few wandering through. It's not the first one and it won't be the last,' he said. 

He added that the most risky captures in the cramped spaces under homes and buildings.

It took the crocodile catcher and three eager volunteers about an hour and a half to ensnare the reptile and wind tape around its mouth and claws for protection

Earlier in September, a woman in south-east Darwin watched more than 20 crocodiles gnash their teeth together as they fought over a dead cow.

Michele Bain said the cow was definitely dead by the time it was pulled into the water and appeared bloated, as though it had been drowned, with chunks of 'black, slimy flesh, like the skin of a seal'.

As the crocodile feasted on the cow, more crocodiles slowly began to emerge.

'There was lots of fighting and splashing - we've been going to that spot for years and we've never seen anything like it,' she previously told Daily Mail Australia. 

'There was lots of fighting and splashing - we've been going to that spot for years and we've never seen anything like it.' 

WHAT IS A SALTWATER CROCODILE? 

Source: Australian Reptile Park