Temporarily, this seemed to work.
Keto returned to the surface of the pool and took a breath, however, he would dive back down to Martínez within seconds.
Horrifically, those on site then saw Keto return to the surface with the 29-year-old on the tip of his rostrum with his mouth closed, as per the Mirror.
Martínez sank to the bottom of the pool after finally being released.
Trainers would urgently try and lure Keto into another pool, yet he reportedly resisted and began playing with the gate.
Martínez’s body was recovered when a net was released into the pool, leading Keto to swim into neighboring water.
Tragically, the 29-year-old had suffered horrific injuries, including internal bleeding.
Martínez’s post-mortem stated he had ‘died due to grave injuries sustained by an orca attack, including multiple compression fractures, tears to vital organs, and the bite marks of the animal on his body.’
Keto has since been described as ‘frustrated and dangerous’ by The Whale Sanctuary Project.
Just months after the death of Alexis Martínez, SeaWorld trainer Dawn Brancheau would die at age 44 after a long and brutal attack from her orca partner, Tilikum.
Traditionally, orcas are not dangerous to humans. There are no documented cases of an orca intentionally harming a human in the wild, as per Business Insider.
The name ‘killer whale’ derives from ‘killer of whales,’ not killers of people, points out Discover Wildlife.