Friends of tourist 'eaten by shark' on dream holiday speak out claiming they 'don't believe shark killed her'

The friends of a tourist said to have been ‘eaten by a shark’ on her dream holiday have spoken out with the claim they ‘don’t believe a shark killed her’.

Colleen Monfore had travelled over to Indonesia’s Pulau Reong Island on 26 September for a diving holiday with her pals.

But the 68-year-old retiree was dragged by strong currents with her group and guide unable to pull her back onto the boat.

Rescue teams were sent out to try and find the American but after eight days, the search was called off on 3 October. With conditions at sea dangerous, it was decided the chances of finding Colleen were low.

And then, on 6 October, a fisherman - over 70 miles from where she vanished - caught a shark with human remains in its belly.

Colleen's friends and family don't think it was a shark attack (Viral Press)

He said: “The shark was caught but it was not in normal health. I thought it had swallowed plastic or a fishing net.

"It was cut open to find the problem and inside there were the remains of a woman.”

Longtime friend Rick Sass explained that authorities were able to ID Colleen from the body’s fingerprints.

However, he told The Post: “We do not believe this was a shark attack. Mike [Colleen’s husband] thinks she suffered some kind of medical issue in the water.”

Rick and wife Kim, who have ran a dive shop for over 40 years and have been looking at photos from the dive, spoke to Mike about the ordeal and reviewed data.

They are sure the woman was not killed by a shark.

Human remains were found inside the shark (Viral Press)

“There was a down current at the turnaround site, but it was manageable,” Kim wrote in a Facebook post. “I’ve easily done 1000+ dive[s] with this gracious woman … I don’t believe it was the environment and certainly not a shark that ended her life.”

Rick added how Colleen ‘knew what she was doing’ before going on to pay tribute to her as a ‘saint’. He explained how she and Mick had never stopped travelling the globe and exploring the seas together.

“She loved nature and animals. I know she would have never wanted a shark to be blamed for this tragedy,” he added.

With these claims form her friends and family that she suffered a ‘medical issue’ rather than being attacked by a shark, it is still unclear how she died.

Indonesian authorities are investigating the harrowing ordeal.