The body parts of a Russian tourist who was killed and eaten by a shark in Egypt have been removed and are set to be cremated by his family.
A horrifying clip of the tragic incident was captured and shared across social media, which showed the man - who was identified by Russian media outlets as 23-year-old Vladimir Popov - being mauled by a shark before disappearing underwater.
The Mirror detailed that Popov had been on a long stay in Egypt, perhaps in an attempt to avoid conscription to Putin's war in Ukraine, though this hasn't been confirmed by any outlet. He had moved to a Red Sea Resort with his father - who witnessed the fatal attack - several months ago.
Popov is heard in the video desperately crying out: "Papa, Papa," as he struggled with the shark, however, his father was too far away.
Egypt's environment ministry said the man was killed after being attacked by a tiger shark in the waters near the city of Hurghada.
Authorities had closed off a 46-mile stretch of the coastline, announcing it would remain off-limits until the weekend. The ministry later said it had caught and killed the shark and was examining it in a laboratory to try and determine the reasons for the rare attack, The Guardian detailed.
A diver who arrived on the scene just after the attack said people had rushed to help Popov after a lifeguard from a nearby hotel raised the alarm, but were sadly not able to reach him in time, and were filmed arriving at the scene just after Popov was pulled underwater for the last time.
The shark had been clubbed to death on the shore by beachgoers once captured, and was confirmed to have been the animal that ate Popov, as his remains were located inside the carcass.
His father Yury shared that he would cremate his son's remains and return the ashes to Russia, per News.com.au.
Tiger sharks are large species that reside in tropical and temperate waters, and according to the International Shark Attack File they are among the shark species most cited for unprovoked attacks on humans. In 2022, two women were killed within days of each other in the same spot Popov was attacked.
