KADAPA: Forest staff seized 15 red sanders logs and arrested three smugglers after conducting raids in Nakkalagandi forest area under the limits of Badvel forest range on Friday. The staff also seized two vehicles.
As part of vehicle check, Badvel Forest Ranger Ramana Reddy along with his staff intercepted a car and seized five logs along with the car and arrested a smuggler.
However, one more inmate of the car managed to escape.
Based on information given by the arrested person, Bhupati Prasad, from Chittoor district, the forest staff checked a mini van, which was specially designed for illegal transportation of red sanders logs and seized 10 logs and arrested two smugglers, Chinna Payam Chinnaraj, a native of Tangamalai in Vellore district of Tamil Nadu and Madhu from Srirampuram of Bengaluru.
Stating that they have a launched a manhunt for nabbing other smugglers, who managed to escape the arrests, Ramana Reddy maintained that they will soon arrest a most wanted red sander smuggler from Chittoor district with the help of information provided by the three arrested smugglers.