Britain should never ever have closed its asylums. There seems to be an increasing number of senseless crimes being committed by the criminally insane or those whose mental illnesses make them a danger to others. The only reason I can think why a random stranger would grab a three year old child at a Zoo and chuck them in the Crocodile enclosure is that they were catastrophically insane. There are reports that the alleged assailant was someone with severe mental difficulties and learning impairment being taken out on a supervised trip to the Zoo but I’m not sure how reliable these reports are.

The Telegraph said:

“A three-year-old boy has been thrown into a crocodile enclosure at a zoo in Cambridgeshire.

The boy was taken to hospital with serious injuries, and is said to be in a critical but stable condition.

Police have arrested a 30-year-old man from Norfolk on suspicion of attempted murder. They said they did not believe the boy and the man were known to each other.

The incident happened at Johnsons Zoo, near Huntingdon, at 1.24pm on Thursday.

The Telegraph understands several crocodiles were in the enclosure when the child entered the water.

Detectives from the Major Crime Unit are investigating, and specially trained officers are at the Addenbrooke’s Hospital supporting the boy’s family.

Det Insp Verity McCann, from Cambridgeshire Constabulary, said: “At this stage, we are speaking to people who were at the zoo at the time of this distressing incident to understand more about the circumstances.

“We do not believe the man arrested and the child are known to each other. Officers are supporting the boy’s family at hospital, and our thoughts remain with them.” “

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2026/06/18/boy-3-thrown-into-crocodile-enclosure-at-uk-zoo/

What a truly awful incident. The randomness and the choice of victim is especially horrific. If this is a madman and I can’t see how it cannot be, then it’s yet another example of how much of the bright idea of Care In The Community has failed and failed so dismally. It is a great pity that those like Enoch Powell and Margaret Thatcher and numerous Health Secretaries who championed Care In The Community are not here to see how their ideas have so terribly panned out. Whilst there are a vast number of mental illnesses and mental conditions that can be managed either by the patient themselves or with the patient being supported by professionals outside of a hospital setting there are clearly a lot of patients who would be better off being treated in a closed setting. This would also certainly reduce the risk of those whose mental conditions are likely to manifest as violence being a threat to the public.