Tiger, leopard skins seized in Nagpur; six held

Nagpur: Six members of a gang allegedly involved in illegal trading of tiger and leopard skins were arrested while several animal skin were seized from them, forest department sources said Wednesday.

Acting on a tip off, the forest staff sent a decoy to a posh hotel at Dhantoli in south-western part of city and then raided the hotel room from where six persons were arrested yesterday. One of the main accused, identified as Abdul Khalil, claimed to have an ownership certificate and was possessing tiger and leopard skins for about 40 years, sources said. However, the skins recovered were without forest department stamps. The accused were allegedly transporting animal skin from Ghatladki in Amravati to Nagpur without seeking permission of the forest department. They have been booked under relevant sections of Wildlife Protection Act, 1972 and sent to custody. The offences may attract imprisonment up to seven years besides hefty penalty, sources added. PTI