Keonjhar: Forest officials arrested three more people involved in the elephant tusk smuggling in Keonjhar Wednesday.
Forest officials had raided Lunaghar village under Bhuyan Juanga Pidhi range Tuesday, seized two pieces of ivory and arrested two people.
The number of arrest in this connection went up to five while the department has intensified its probe into the angle of elephant poaching and smuggling of ivory.
The officials had seized two tusks weighing over 7 kg. They were valued at more than Rs 5 lakh. The department is trying to know if the tusks belong to one elephant or two.
The department also wants to know if the elephants were killed in the district or somewhere else. If any elephant has been killed for the purpose, the officials have not got clues about its decomposed carcass, it was said.
It may be noted here that a few days ago, forest officials had recovered the decomposed carcass of an elephant in Bhuyan Juanga Pidhi range.
The accused were identified as Subash Hembram of Dhatika Pareswar Nayak of Nelung and Gopal Munda of Lunaghar. The other arrested were identified as Daktar Munda of Keonjhar and Ranjan Baith of Bangiriposi in Mayurbhanj district.
Acting on a tip-off about the deal related to elephant tusks, forest officials led by DFO HD Dhanraj raided the area.
A forest official in plain clothes earlier went to the village as a trader and wanted to buy a tusk (3.059 kg) for Rs 2.80 lakh and the other (3.605 kg) for Rs 3.20 lakh.
As the two brought the tusk to the front yard of their house, forest officials raided the house and arrested them.
PNN