Pangolin smuggler held

BHUBANESWAR: The Special Task Force (STF) of Crime Branch on Friday arrested a pangolin smuggler , Mohammad Jamshed from Berhampur.

Wanted in two cases at Balaghat and Pench Tiger Reserve in Madhya Pradesh, Mohammad was arrested on a tip-off by inter-state wildlife trader Amir Hussain Laskar of Silchar in Assam. Laskar was arrested by STF earlier.  

He informed about smuggling of pangolin scales from Khurda and Berhampur to China via Vietnam by Shamsuddin Khan, his son Allarakha Khan, MD Mustaq and Jamshed. All were wanted in the two cases in MP.

STF SP Satyajit Nayak said the accused used to procure pangolin scales from Kandhamal, Kalahandi and other parts of the State before smuggling those to North East region. Others were arrested earlier.