MYSURU: Close on the heels of the arrest of two individuals, who were held with 700kg of sandalwood logs estimated to be worth nearly Rs 1 crore, Mysuru police have stepped up efforts to curb the activities of those involved in the smuggling operation, and nab the honchos at the helm of this racket.
Sleuths of the City Crime Branch (CCB) led by assistant commissioner of police CK Ashwathnarayan and comprising inspector A Mallesha, among others, uncovered a racket that was involved in the smuggling of sandalwood logs. Following the seizure of such a huge cache of sandalwood logs, police suspect the involvement of an organised crime syndicate in the operation. Intent on putting an end to the smuggling of sandalwood from the district, Mysuru police have decided to constitute special teams that will be entrusted with looking into the operation.
The sandalwood logs that were seized by the cops were being transported to Bengaluru in a specialised vehicle that contained a concealed chamber in which the logs were hidden. The duo arrested by CCB sleuths have claimed ignorance about the scope of the operation. The two individuals said that they were merely following orders to ferry the logs from Mysuru to Bengaluru. Meanwhile, police are interrogating the duo, while mounting a search for the kingpin in parallel.
Police sources suspect that the kingpin is a resident of a neighbouring state. Information that cops have ferreted from the two who were arrested has helped ascertain that the logs they were transporting were from trees felled in the Mysuru region.
Deputy conservator of forests Kamala Karikalan told TOI, “Forest department is always willing to assist police to curb such activities, and will share any information that will help them. The sandalwood logs that were seized are being stored at the sandalwood depots across the state, including one in Mysuru.”
Kamala said that there are 15 different types of sandalwood, with the price ranging from Rs 7,000 per kilogram to Rs 20,000/kg.
Sleuths of the City Crime Branch (CCB) led by assistant commissioner of police CK Ashwathnarayan and comprising inspector A Mallesha, among others, uncovered a racket that was involved in the smuggling of sandalwood logs. Following the seizure of such a huge cache of sandalwood logs, police suspect the involvement of an organised crime syndicate in the operation. Intent on putting an end to the smuggling of sandalwood from the district, Mysuru police have decided to constitute special teams that will be entrusted with looking into the operation.
The sandalwood logs that were seized by the cops were being transported to Bengaluru in a specialised vehicle that contained a concealed chamber in which the logs were hidden. The duo arrested by CCB sleuths have claimed ignorance about the scope of the operation. The two individuals said that they were merely following orders to ferry the logs from Mysuru to Bengaluru. Meanwhile, police are interrogating the duo, while mounting a search for the kingpin in parallel.
Police sources suspect that the kingpin is a resident of a neighbouring state. Information that cops have ferreted from the two who were arrested has helped ascertain that the logs they were transporting were from trees felled in the Mysuru region.
Deputy conservator of forests Kamala Karikalan told TOI, “Forest department is always willing to assist police to curb such activities, and will share any information that will help them. The sandalwood logs that were seized are being stored at the sandalwood depots across the state, including one in Mysuru.”
Kamala said that there are 15 different types of sandalwood, with the price ranging from Rs 7,000 per kilogram to Rs 20,000/kg.
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