Crocodile Hunter Steve Irwin's wife Terri has been handed the footage of her husband's death after Queensland authorities broke with protocol to ensure it did not get into the wrong hands.
Queensland State Coroner, Michael Barnes said the original tape was handed to Terri Irwin just before Christmas, with the coronial investigation into the death almost completed.
Mr Barnes told The Australian that the footage is normally held by the Coroner in perpetuity but copies of film showing Irwin being gored by a stringray had been destroyed amid fears it would be leaked and sold on the black market.
Copies of the film, which shows Irwin being stabbed in the heart by a stingray, have been destroyed, Michael Barnes said.
The coronial investigation is almost complete and the footage was handed to Terri Irwin just before Christmas, Mr Barnes said.
"When the final police investigation report is received the coroner will, in consultation with Ms Irwin, determine whether an inquest is necessary," Mr Barnes said.
"I'm not sure whether we will be doing that in this case because of the risk it poses," Mr Barnes says. "Police had a responsibility to ensure the footage was not leaked.". Some TV operators told him that, they are willing to pay up to $1 million for the footage.
The Result of the tape investigation into Irwin's death will be made public within weeks.
On New Year's Day, Glasshouse Mountains Road officially became Steve Irwin Way in honour of the late Crocodile Hunter.
Steve Irwin, 44, died in September after being stabbed in the chest by a stingray's poisonous barb while filming a documentary on Australia's Great Barrier Reef.
Source: AAP
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