Mumbai: 3 held with ambergris, pangolin scales, says police

The Thane Police Crime Branch on Tuesday arrested three people in alleged possession of ambergris (originates as a secretion in the intestines of a sperm whale) worth Rs 20 crore and pangolin scales worth Rs 20 lakh. Investigators are trying to find out where the men sourced the substances from, sources said.

According to the Thane Crime Branch Unit I, the accused have been identified as Kashinath Pawar (50), Dileep Birje (49) and Dnyaneshwar More (40). “More and Pawar are residents of Raigad and Birje is a resident of coastal Ratnagiri. While Pawar found the Pangolin scales in a forest near Kolhapur, the ambergris was found by Birje while he was fishing,” said Senior Inspector Nitin Thakre. “Birje didn’t know what it was, and thought of it to be some kind of a rare stone. Later, he saw a TV clip about the ambergris and asked his son to check on the internet. When he realised how valuable the slimy hardened, wax-like material was, he started looking for buyers,” Thakre said.

The accused had come to Kalwa when police arrested them, sources said. “We had prior information that some men were trying to sell animal skins and other valuable items,” an officer said.

“The pangolin scales weigh around 6 kg and cost close to Rs 20 lakh. The scales are sold illegally and are used in various home-brewed medicines. The ambergris is used in making perfumes. The ambergris seized weighs more than 10 kg and worth Rs 20 crore,” the officer said.