Forest officials seize 2kg wild boar meat

Forest officials from the Sanjay Gandhi National Park (SGNP) seized 2kg wild boar meat, two air guns and a rifle from a house in Chena village, Yeoor range, on Tuesday morning. The accused, who is absconding, has been identified as Yogesh Jadhav, 40.

Officials suspect a large poaching nexus operating out of Yeoor that kills animals for bushmeat. “Based on a tipoff, our team from Yeoor and a team from Thane crime branch unit-5, reached Chena village around 8am on Tuesday and initiated a search at Jadhav’s house. We found a number of wildlife articles and ammunition used for poaching activities,” said Rajendra Pawar, range forest officer (Yeoor), SGNP.

According to forest officials, storing wild boar meat and keeping guns within reserved forest territory is a violation of the Indian Forest Act, 1927, and Wildlife Protection Act, 1972.

Pawar added that the alleged accused went fishing when the seizure was carried out at his residence.

“He got information about the seizure and is currently on the run. However, we have the exact location where Jadhav is hiding and we are likely to arrest him by Wednesday,” he said. “Since a large quantity of meat was seized, it is clear that there are others involved in this poaching operation. More details will be clear after interrogating Jadhav.”

First Published: Jun 19, 2019 02:59 IST