Mysuru: On the heels of the arrest of two persons caught with 700 kgs of sandalwood estimated to be worth around Rs one crore, Mysore Police have intensified efforts to curb the activities of those involved in the smuggling operation and nab the people at the helm of the racket.
City Crime Branch (CCB) officials led by Assistant Commissioner of Police CK Ashwathnarayan and Inspector A Mallesha, among others, unearthed a racket involved in smuggling sandalwood. After the seizure of such a huge consignment of sandalwood logs, the police suspect the involvement of an organized crime syndicate in the operation. With an intention to put an end to sandalwood smuggling from the district, the Mysore Police has decided to form special teams that will be assigned to oversee the operation.
The sandalwood logs confiscated by the police were being taken to Bengaluru in a special vehicle which had a hidden chamber in which the logs were hidden. The duo, who were arrested by the CCB officials, claimed ignorance about the scope of the operation. Both the persons said that they were only following orders to ferry logs from Mysore to Bengaluru. Meanwhile, the police is intensifying the search for the kingpin and interrogating the two.
Police sources suspect that the kingpin is from the neighboring state. The information obtained by the police from the two men who were arrested has helped in ascertaining that the logs they were carrying were from fallen trees in the Mysore region.
Deputy Conservator of Forests Kamala Karikalan told TOI, “The forest department is always ready to assist the police in curbing such activities, and will share any information that will help them. It is being stored in sandalwood depots across the state, including one in Mysore.”
Kamala said there are 15 different varieties of sandalwood, ranging in price from Rs 7,000 per kg to Rs 20,000 per kg.
City Crime Branch (CCB) officials led by Assistant Commissioner of Police CK Ashwathnarayan and Inspector A Mallesha, among others, unearthed a racket involved in smuggling sandalwood. After the seizure of such a huge consignment of sandalwood logs, the police suspect the involvement of an organized crime syndicate in the operation. With an intention to put an end to sandalwood smuggling from the district, the Mysore Police has decided to form special teams that will be assigned to oversee the operation.
The sandalwood logs confiscated by the police were being taken to Bengaluru in a special vehicle which had a hidden chamber in which the logs were hidden. The duo, who were arrested by the CCB officials, claimed ignorance about the scope of the operation. Both the persons said that they were only following orders to ferry logs from Mysore to Bengaluru. Meanwhile, the police is intensifying the search for the kingpin and interrogating the two.
Police sources suspect that the kingpin is from the neighboring state. The information obtained by the police from the two men who were arrested has helped in ascertaining that the logs they were carrying were from fallen trees in the Mysore region.
Deputy Conservator of Forests Kamala Karikalan told TOI, “The forest department is always ready to assist the police in curbing such activities, and will share any information that will help them. It is being stored in sandalwood depots across the state, including one in Mysore.”
Kamala said there are 15 different varieties of sandalwood, ranging in price from Rs 7,000 per kg to Rs 20,000 per kg.
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