COLOMBO, Feb. 24 (Xinhua) -- A huge 16.5-foot (about 5.03 meters) crocodile weighing up to 1,000 kg was captured in Sri Lanka on Sunday, a local newspaper said on Monday.

    The Daily Mirror said the giant crocodile was captured by residents in Hendala, around 20 km north of the capital Colombo, around 3:00 a.m. local time (2130 GMT).

    The residents caught the crocodile with the help of a noose while it was swimming in the Kallualla canal, the newspaper said.

    The newspaper quoted Wildlife Department range officer Amil Jayawardene as saying the crocodile was 16.5 feet long and weighed between 800 kg and 1,000 kg.

    With the assistance of the residents and the police, the male crocodile was transported to the head office of the Wild Life Department in Malabe, the newspaper said.

    It would be transferred to the Udewallawe sanctuary and that relocation of the animal was the best thing to do although the marshland around Colombo was its natural habitat, the newspaper said.

    Residents complained the animal was responsible for the disappearance of household pets and livestock in the area and had been spotted in moving the vicinity a few times.