Udala: The Crime Branch has taken two of the four accused in pangolin smuggling on a four-day remand Sunday here in Mayurbhanj.
The Special Task Force (STF) of Crime Branch had arrested four persons from Udala on the charges of illegally possessing pangolins for smuggling.
The two accused were produced in the SDJM court Sunday and the Crime Branch had applied to the court for custodial investigation of the two for four days, said DSP Tejraj Patel.
Investigation was intensified to gather more information of the wildlife trafficking, he added.
The STF had arrested Balia Andar of Ambadiha Colony, Raghunath Behera of Chakradharpur in Kaptipada range, Debendra Das and Janmenjay Naik of Nudadiha slum. The four reportedly struck a deal with a procurer to sell the mammals at a cost of Rs 22 lakh.
A case has been registered against them under Section 51 of the Wildlife Protection Act, 1972. It may be noted here that pangolins in India have been listed as “endangered” by the UN affiliated International Union for Conservation of Nature’s (IUCN) Red List.
The STF officials came to know that parts of pangolins are smuggled into foreign countries while a nation-wide racket is pushing it.
The body parts are routed through West Bengal, Mizoram and Assam to Myanmar and China.
An official said that efforts are on to lay hands on the racket in coming days.
PNN
