The Forest Department has arrested a gang of three persons for smuggling two large tusks near Gudiyatham town in Vellore.
The arrested persons were identified as K. Thiruvengadam, 38, a native of Chittoor (A.P.), and his relatives G. Munusamy, 49, and S. Govindaraj, residents of Anaicut in Vellore.
Based on a tip off, a team of forest officials led by S. Pradeep Kumar, Forest Range Officer (Gudiyatham), stopped a two-wheeler, on which the gang were proceeding, when they were checking vehicles at the bus depot on Gudiyatham–Pallikonda Main Road.
Forest officials said that the gang gave contradictory answers when they were asked about the purpose of the visit. The team seized the tusks from a gunny bag that was carried by the gang. Forest officials said that the trio visited Tirumala temple in Tirupati and went to a local temple near Papavinasanam reservoir, where they chopped off the tusks from the carcass of an elephant. Each tusk, on an average, measures around 64 centimeters in length. They decided to sell the tusks to prospective buyers in Vellore, but the gang was intercepted by forest officials in Gudiyatham.
A case was registered, and they were lodged at Central Prison in Vellore. Further probe is under way.
