Seven held while trying to sell tiger pelt

Kozhikode: Forest officials and forest vigilance wing arrested a seven-member gang that was attempting to sell tiger skin, teeth and claws. The arrest followed a raid at Kathiroor in Kannur, said officials on Sunday.Acting on a tip-off, the team conducted a search in Kathiroor and a gang was intercepted. In the first phase, Ashwin N, of Eruvatty, and Sandeesh P M and Balan C, of Cheruvanchery, were arrested at Kathiroor.Forest officials seized tiger skin, teeth and claws from them, along with the scooter used to transport the contraband.Based on information obtained during their interrogation, further investigations were carried out, leading to the arrest of the remaining accused. Sharath K K of Kallikkandy, who was travelling from Bengaluru, Rajeesh Kadachi of Mangad, Vithul V K of Cheruvanchery and Rakhil T P of Malal were taken into custody.Questioning revealed that the wildlife articles were brought from Karnataka for sale in Kerala. A car used to transport the tiger skin from Karnataka to Kerala was also seized.The operation was carried out by a team comprising Kottiyoor range officer Nithin Raj, Tholambra section beat forest officers Ramya K K and Vipeesh B C and Kannur forest vigilance beat forest officers Mukesh K P, Priya C and Shinil C. The arrested accused were produced before Thalassery JFCM court.