In the latest interception of wildlife offence, the Special Task Force (STF) wing of Odisha police on Wednesday seized a leopard skin and arrested a wildlife criminal in Gajapati district.
The poaching of these protected animals has shot up in Odisha with the seizure of around 32 leopard skins in the last two years. Of the seizures, the STF alone has accounted for the seizure of 26 skins.
The arrested person was identified as Pabitra Lima. The STF personnel nabbed the offenders near Mahendragiri under R. Udayagiri police station jurisdiction. He was about to strike a deal to dispose of the skin when the STF arrested them on specific feedback provided from the ground level, said Deputy Inspector General of Police, STF, Mr. Jai Narayan Pankaj.
Poaching of leopards, a Schedule I animal under the Wildlife Protection Act, 1972 that provides for absolute protection of the animals, has gone up in the State, posing threat to the protected wildlife species.
The arrested person is being interrogated. It is being investigated to ascertain whether he was part of an organized wildlife trophy smuggling racket.
During the last two years, the STF has intensified its special drive against wildlife criminals and poachers and seized as many as 26 leopard skins, 15 elephant tusks, 7 deer skins, 11 live pangolins, and 19.5 kg pangolin scales while 60 wildlife criminals were also arrested.