The reptile was spotted in the paddy and is believed to have been carried to the location by the overflowing Luk Ulo River following heavy rain the night before.
Some residents tried to catch the animal, but in doing so they provoked it to get out of the water, run wild and cause panic.
"We were unaware that the crocodile is that big. So we all ran away once it got to the ground with its mouth wide open," said villager Turyono. "It came after us fast. It was ferocious."
Numerous attempts to catch the apparently angered crocodile failed. Some tried to use bamboo sticks and steel wire to snare it, but the reptile broke the trap.
"The crocodile then disappeared, but villagers are now haunted by fear that it could return," Turyono said.
Kebumen Police spokesman Adj. Comr. Willy Budiyanto criticized the villagers for attempting to catch the animal.
"It is dangerous to try to catch a crocodile without proper knowledge, not to mention the fact that they did it at very close range," he said.
In Balikpapan, East Kalimantan, a 50-year-old man is missing after he was reportedly attacked by a wild crocodile near the Balang Island bridge on Wednesday.
"The man, Maskur, was attacked when he and his two children set up a fish trap," said Octavianto from the East and North Kalimantan SAR Agency.
'Idiots of the century' swim in baited croc trap
A group of men seen swimming inside a baited crocodile trap in Australia near where a woman was recently eaten were blasted as "idiots of the century" Tuesday.
Photos posted on Facebook showed the four men clambering on the floating trap set near a marina at Port Douglas in northern Queensland state and even posing inside it.
It is not far from where a 4.3-metre (14-foot) croc killed dementia sufferer Anne Cameron.
The beast that took the 79-year-old less than two weeks ago was trapped and human remains found inside, but plenty of other crocodiles inhabit the rivers and seas in the area.
Douglas Shire Mayor Julia Leu said she was stunned at their stupidity.
"I was absolutely gobsmacked, this is incredibly stupid and dangerous behaviour," she said told broadcaster ABC.
"I'm wondering if these fellows are vying for the idiots of the year award or the idiots of the century award."
Queensland Environment Minister Steven Miles also weighed in, tweeting: "Srsly? The meat we put in these traps is bait. For crocodiles. Don't swim in them! It's stupid, and illegal."
Saltwater crocodiles, which can grow up to seven metres long and weigh more than a tonne, are a common feature of Australia's tropical north and kill an average of two people a year.
Their numbers have exploded since they were declared a protected species in the 1970s, with Cameron's death reigniting calls to control them.
Queensland's environment department said the men's actions were "reckless".
"These traps are specifically designed to attract crocodiles and they are deployed in places where a problem crocodile is known to be present," it said in a statement.
"It is not an exaggeration to say that interfering with crocodile traps can be potentially life-threatening for the person concerned."
There are fines of up to Aus$15,000 (US$11,700) for interfering with a crocodile trap.
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