Balasore: In a significant crackdown on wildlife crime, officials from the Balasore Wildlife Division seized a Royal Bengal Tiger skin on Monday and arrested 11 individuals involved in the illegal trade.
Acting on intelligence inputs, a special team comprising personnel from the Balasore and Mayurbhanj Wildlife Divisions conducted a covert operation. They apprehended four individuals red-handed with a Royal Bengal Tiger skin near Soro under the Barajadeuli Beat of Talpada Wildlife Section.
During interrogation, the detained suspects provided leads that resulted in the arrest of seven additional individuals and seizure of a country made gun, bringing the total number of arrests to 11.
A case has been registered under the Wildlife Protection Act, 1972 (amended in 2022), in the Chandipur Wildlife Range under the jurisdiction of the Balasore Wildlife Division.
The accused have been remanded to judicial custody.