Five individuals have been taken into custody for smuggling star tortoises from Karnataka to Kerala on Tuesday from Thondayad in Kozhikode.
A flying squad led by Divisional Forest Officer P. Dhanesh Kumar also took into custody a car and a motorbike that were used for the smuggling.
The arrested are Prashanth alias Thilak Nanda from Bajathur near Mangaluru, Arun P.S. from Ernakulam, Shajir C.H. from Thalassery, Nandeesh from Bengaluru and Shibi N.P from Kozhikode.
The Indian star tortoise is an endangered species and have been included in the Wildlife Protection Act Schedule 4 of 1974. The Forest department is trying to identify the source of the smuggled tortoises and their possible market overseas. The accused, the tortoises and the vehicles in custody have been shifted to the Thamarassery range for further investigations.