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Two held for smuggling pangolin worth ₹50 lakh in Pune
Based on a tip-off that the accused would arrive at Katraj chowk to sell off the animal, police naik Sachin Jadhav of Unit-1 of Pune police crime branch laid a trap and apprehended them.
The Pune police crime branch on Wednesday arrested two men for smuggling and trying to sell a pangolin, an endangered animal.
The arrested have been identified as Ramchandra Dinkar Gaikwad, 29, a resident of Khadekhol in Panhala region of Kolhapur and Suraj Dhanaji Phalke, 20, of Koregaon area of Satara, according to the police.
Based on a tip-off that the accused would arrive at Katraj chowk to sell off the animal, police naik Sachin Jadhav of Unit-1 of Pune police crime branch laid a trap and apprehended them. The accused, who arrived in a car at Katraj-Kondhwa road, were carrying the animal in a rucksack.
The police team arrived at the spot in private vehicles to avoid public attention.
The animal can fetch up to ₹50 lakh in the international market. Pangolins are poached for their unique scales and meat used in medicines for asthma, rheumatism and arthritis, said the police.
“The accused are farmers who found the ant-eating mammal in their farm. They tried to sell it off after knowing online the price the animal fetches in the international market. They had reached Pune to meet a prospective buyer before they were nabbed,” said Shreeshail Chiwadshetty, assistant inspector, Bharati Vidyapeeth police station, who is investigating the case.
The duo was booked under Sections 2, 4, 11, 49, 50 , 51 of Wildlife Protection Act, 1972.
