BY JASON LEMON 

baptism ceremony in Ethiopia went horrifically wrong on Sunday, when a crocodile attacked a religious leader.

Docho Eshete, a Protestant pastor, was leading the baptismal ceremony at Lake Abaya, near Arba Minch city. About 80 people were planning to be baptized, but only one completed the religious rite successfully before tragedy struck.

“He baptized the first person and he passed on to another one. All of a sudden, a crocodile jumped out of the lake and grabbed the pastor,” local resident Ketema Kairo told the BBC.

In this photo taken on July 24, 2015, a crocodile sunbathes on a river bank at Yala National Park in Sri Lanka. Fishermen and members of the congregation did their best to help Docho Eshete, a Protestant pastor.S.KODIKARA/AFP/GETTY IMAGES