MP nabs Interpol-wanted tiger trafficker in midnight raid on Indo–China border after 10-year hunt

BHOPAL: In a major breakthrough, a joint team of the Madhya Pradesh State Tiger Strike Force (STSF) and the Wildlife Crime Control Bureau (WCCB), New Delhi, has arrested Interpol-wanted alleged international wildlife trafficker Yangchen Lachungpa in a covert, “movie-style” operation on the Indo–China border, ending a 10-year search linked to one of India’s biggest tiger poaching cases.Yangchen, 43, was allegedly apprehended on December 2, 2025, in Lachung, Mangan district, North Sikkim, just a few kilometres from the Indo–China international border, after months of technical surveillance, decoy movements and night-time encirclement in freezing –7°C temperatures. Officers said the raid took place in a difficult terrain, with intermittent cellphone connectivity and alleged resistance from local sympathisers. Investigators also said she attempted to destroy two mobile phones and a coded diary containing names, suspected trafficking routes and hawala references.Authorities said the operation was carried out under the direction of the Chief Minister of Madhya Pradesh, as part of ongoing efforts to protect forests and wildlife. The Forest Department, STSF and WCCB had reportedly been tracking Yangchen for months prior to the raid.Interpol had earlier issued a Red Corner Notice against Yangchen at the request of the Government of India, enabling law enforcement in 195 countries to detain her if located. Investigators said she was previously married to alleged kingpin Jaiy Tamang, and was believed to have played a critical role in building trafficking corridors from India to Nepal, Tibet and China for tiger parts, pangolin scales, red sanders, shahtoosh wool and Cordyceps.Yangchen is originally from the Tibet allegedly maintained residences in Delhi and remote areas of Sikkim, frequently changing locations to evade arrest.The case dates back to July 2015, when Madhya Pradesh authorities registered a case involving alleged poaching of tigers and pangolins and the smuggling of tiger bones and pangolin scales to China via Nepal. Because of the seriousness of the matter, the investigation was handed over to the STSF, which uncovered what officials described as an organised international trafficking ring. A total of 31 accused have been arrested so far, and 27 were convicted by a Narmadapuram court in 2022. Yangchen was allegedly a key missing link.Officials said Yangchen was first apprehended in September 2017 and produced for transit remand, but allegedly absconded after obtaining interim bail. In 2019, her anticipatory bail was rejected by the Madhya Pradesh High Court in Jabalpur. She had allegedly been evading arrest for nearly a decade.Her name has allegedly surfaced in multiple international seizures. In April 2015, Ethiopian authorities confiscated eight Indian tiger hides, at least three suspected to have originated in Satpura. In 2013, Nepal Police seized five tiger skins and seven sacks of bones in the Nuwakot district while the consignment was reportedly being smuggled to Tibet. DNA analysis by the Wildlife Institute of India (WII) allegedly confirmed one hide belonged to tigress T-13 from Pench Tiger Reserve. Officials said these seizures suggest suspected trafficking routes running from Madhya Pradesh’s tiger belts to Nepal and Tibet, and even through African transit hubs.After her arrest on December 2, Yangchen was produced before the Court in Gangtok, where Madhya Pradesh authorities presented their case, and a transit warrant was issued on the night of December 3. She is now being brought to Madhya Pradesh for further proceedings. Officials said Sikkim Police provided crucial cooperation during the operation.Investigators allege that payments were routed through Kathmandu, Siliguri and border villages, with suspected stockpiles stored in forest areas of Satpura, Pench, Betul and Tamia. Encrypted communication, international buyers and the names recorded in the seized diary will now be examined.A senior enforcement official said the arrest was expected to reveal further details about alleged foreign buyers, financial backers and interstate middlemen. Officials believe Yangchen’s interrogation may lead to additional arrests and help dismantle what investigators allege is one of the world’s most sophisticated illegal wildlife trafficking networks.