Bhubaneswar: Wildlife crimes continued with a special task force (STF) crime branch on Friday grab leopard skin, ivory elephant and almost 2 kg of pangolin scales from a man in the deogarh district.
The defendant was identified as Madan Kumar Jayapura (45), a resident of Deogarh District.
The translation came a day after STF won two leopards from other men in Mayurbhanj District on Thursday.
“We acted on the new input and raided the place near the telibani at the National Highway no.
49 and arrested the defendant with Skin Leopard, Elephant Tusk and Pangolin.
Local forest officials helped us during the raid.
Accused seems to be an intermediary.
We will try to track hunter and Knowing the person, who supplied the parts of the wildlife’s body to Jayapura, “said an STF officer.
STF found a bullet wound on the leopard, raising suspicion that the leopard was shot by a hunter.
STF will send a wildlife exhibition confiscated to the Institute of Indian, Dehradun, for chemical examinations.
Although the main stf mandate is to curb organized crime and drug trafficking in the state, the protection of endangered wildlife species and hard action against wildlife smugglers is still the focus area.
STF has confiscated 25 leopard skin, 13 ivory elephants, seven deer skin, saved nine pangolin and won the scale of Pangolin 16 kg since 2020 until now.
Overall 55 people were arrested during the period for alleged their involvement in wildlife crimes.