Police arrest gang for selling ivory

Bengaluru: In a covert operation in Krishnagiri and Dharmapuri districts of Tamil Nadu,

Police busted an ivory smuggling racket and arrested a gang of five men here on Wednesday.

The police further found out that the operation was led by Khader Basha, allegedly a DMK party member.

The six men are suspected of poaching elephants and other wildlife in Tamil Nadu and selling products, like tusks, in Karnataka. The police seized 12 tusks from the gang.

Based on reliable information the police posed as clients and approached the accused to buy Elephant tusks. When the accused agreed to sell four tusks, they were promptly arrested with the poached goods.

On questioning them, the police learned that they were part of a larger gang that operated out of Krishnagiri district. “We learned that the leader of the gang was Khader Basha from Anchetty,” said the police.

Basha and the other three accused were brought to Bengaluru and booked under various sections of the Indian Penal Code and also under the Wildlife Protection Act.

“Our initial probe has revealed that Basha is the kingpin of the racket. He ran a gang that would poach animals in the forests of Krishnagiri and Hosur districts,” said a senior police officer. The police are investigating if the gang has a place to illegally store wildlife products meant for sale in the black market.