Source: The Sangai Express
Imphal, April 30 2010:
One Md Chaoba (45) of Phoubakchao Yumnam Leirak village in Imphal west district, detained on charges of poaching the endangered brow Antlered deer locally called Sangai, has been remanded to five days police custody by the court of Chief Judicial Magistrate (Bishnupur) today.
A 'habitual' poacher of the Sangai and other wild animals, Md Chaoba was apprehended along with a single barrel gun with 16 rounds from the Keibul Lamjao National Park which is the only natural habitat of the rare animal, by forest Department personnel with assistance of the police.
He was produced before the Court which remanded him to police custody till Tuesday to facilitate the police interrogate the captive as an investigation process.
"We have been searching for him and two of his accomplices since long time back for their involvement in poaching Sangai and other wild animals in Keibul Lamjao," a forest ranger manning the national park, which is a floating biomass in Loktak Lake said.
It is informed that locals of Keibul Lamjao used to convey information about Chaoba and his two accomplices involved in poaching wild animals inside the park but managed to evade arrest till his running days was literally numbered yesterday.
Chaoba's arrest came barely 50 days after forest officials recovered over 300 nets and traps meant for poaching animals from the national park covering an area of forty square kilometres.
In all 25 employees including two rangers and 23 forest guards are currently manning the unfenced national park, official sources said adding since the employees are not given arms, they are facing an uphill task to round up poachers, most of whom possess weapons.