BELAGAVI: A man wanted by the police in a sandalwood smuggling case has been arrested from Sangli in Maharashtra, 34 years after he went absconding.
Chandrakant Laxman Suryavanshi (61) had been booked for illegally transporting sandalwood in 1984 following which a court in Bailhongal had issued an arrest warrant. Since then, police made unsuccessful attempts to trace him.A team of Kittur police arrested him near Navavasant Balaji Mill in Sangli on Thursday following a tip-off.
He was brought to Bailhongal and produced before the court which remanded him in judicial custody. He has been sent to Hindalga prison.On July 30, 1984, Suryavanshi had been caught illegally transporting about 900 kg of sandalwood logs worth `54,000 at that time, sources said. The police managed to seize the entire sandalwood from the vehicle, but Suryavanshi escaped. To trace Suryavanshi who was 37 years old at that time, a police team was formed, but he remained elusive.