Workers at an Australian fish wholesaler's found a human head inside a giant cod they were preparing for sale, police in the Queensland city of Cairns said yesterday.
The police reported that the 97lb Morgan Cod was caught by a fishing trawler off Townsville at the weekend and had been delivered to the seafood wholesaler before sale to the public.
"On preparing the fish they observed the remains inside and contacted police," Det Sgt David Miles told reporters.
"It was fairly big, and the head appeared to be fairly much intact inside it," he said, according to agency reports.
Local media suggested the head could have been that of a trawler fisherman who went missing in waters about 31 miles off Townsville early on Sunday.
Police said a search for the fisherman, Mr Michael Edwards (39), who was from Cairns, was called off after the discovery of the head inside the 5.2ft fish. It was hoped forensic tests would help determine how the head had been severed.
Police took the cod away in a body bag from the A Fine Kettle O'Fish filleting factory in Cairns.
The factory's co-owner, Mr Peter Monson, said the male head was "wholly intact" inside the fish, which was being filleted at the time of the discovery.
The giant cod had been caught by a line fisherman off Townsville at the weekend and brought into Cairns, where it was kept on ice. "It's not an everyday occurrence that you make a discovery like this. There was just total disbelief. You would never dream of it," said Mr Monson. Sgt Miles said the head had been found "reasonably intact", and forensic experts would be working over the next few days to establish its identity.
The Morgan Cod grows to a huge size and is found quite commonly in waters around the Great Barrier Reef. Morgan Cod suck in their prey and do not have sharp teeth.
Police said the missing fisherman had not been located. They believe that he must have fallen overboard in unexplained circumstances. After days of investigation, the police said, they were now working on the assumption that Mr Edwards's body would not be found, although they were not sure if the head found in the giant cod could be positively identified.