BHUBANESWAR: The Wildlife Crime Cell of the Odisha Crime Branch seized contraband wildlife products in Bargarh town and arrested three persons. "Wildlife Crime Cell of Odisha Crime Branch makes seizure of contraband wildlife products in Bargarh town area," Special DG of Police, Crime, Bijay Kumar Sharma, said in a series of Twitter posts.
While two accused are from Chhattisgarh, the third is a local who came to Bargarh reportedly for selling products, he said. A case has been registered and the arrested persons in the case will be brought on remand for custodial interrogation, he added.
In a joint operation carried out together with the Wildlife Crime Control Bureau, New Delhi, the Crime Branch seized ivory, pangolin scales and bear nails from the three accused, he said and added that the seized products are covered under Schedule 1 of Wildlife Protection Act, 1972.
Investigation is in progress to ascertain the links of the arrested persons with wildlife smuggling and obtain information about others involved in the network.