Wildlife Smuggling: Leopard Hide Seized, 7 Arrested From Odisha’s 2 Districts

Baripada: Wildlife officials seized a leopard skin and arrested seven persons in this connection in Mayurbhanj district on Wednesday night.

According to sources, the officials of Wildlife Crime Control Bureau (WCCB), Keonjhar received reliable information that a deal was going on to sell the leopard hide near old bus stand at Karanjia in Mayurbhanj. The Wildlife officials of Keonjhar along with their Karanjia counterparts conducted a raid on the place.

During the raid, they recovered the skin of the leopard and arrested 2 persons who were trying to broker the deal. Later, they arrested 5 other persons, allegedly involved in hunting the leopard and smuggling its hide from Keonjhar, on the basis of the information provided by the arrested persons.

As per the preliminary investigation, the leopard was shot some 15 to 20 days back, said Ranger Pradip Prusty. The hide was 4.5 ft in length, he added.