BARIPADA: Bangiriposi police on Tuesday arrested a former security guard of Shyamsundarpur Gramin Bank for allegedly supplying ammunition to poachers operating in Similipal Tiger Reserve.
The accused was identified as a 54-year-old Chittaranjan Giri. A muzzle-loading rifle, four live rounds, and procurement receipts for 954 rounds of ammunition were seized from his possession.
Following a tip-off, police raided Giri’s house at Dhobanisole village and uncovered evidence suggesting that he had procured ammunition from multiple registered armouries across Bhubaneswar, Cuttack, Balasore, and Medinipur (in West Bengal) between 2015 and 2025.
Bangiriposi IIC Birendra Senapati said apart from the firearm and ammunition, police also recovered Giri’s gun licence, Aadhaar card, and several money receipts indicating the purchase of ammunition over the past decade.
Giri’s arrest is linked to an earlier case registered by the Forest department in which five persons were nabbed for poaching in Similipal. Firearms and bullets were recovered from them, and investigation later revealed that the ammunition had been supplied by a source in Bangiriposi.
“During interrogation, Giri admitted to having procured the ammunition and sold it illegally to poachers. He was operating this racket since 2015. A case has been registered under sections 25 and 27 of the Arms Act and Section 120(B) of the BNS and further investigation is on,” the IIC said.
Senapati further said the poachers involved in the killing of a forester and a forest guard in Similipal two years back had sourced their ammunition from Giri.