Wilson Garden cops arrested three men on February 6 on charges of smuggling four ivories and charged them under Wildlife Protection Act.
Here is a case of thieves fooling police: a case of major wildlife seizure by city police proved to be a damp squib as the four ivories seized are fake.
The Wilson Garden police had detained 12 and arrested three on February 6, and had claimed to have cracked a gang into wildlife trade. Putra and Suresh from Nagamangala in Mandya district and Prakash from Pakshirajpura in Chamarajanagar were arrested while they were trying to transport four ivories at Shantinagar bus stand, to sell them in Mandya and Mysore.
“It is a clear case of thieves fooling the police. All the ivories seized have proved to be fake,” an expert who was part of the team from the Forensic Science laboratory examining the authenticity of the ivories, told Bangalore Mirror. “With this, the whole case could fail.”
The three were booked under the provisions of the Indian Wildlife Protection Act, 1972 for possessing and attempting to sell the ivory, which is strictly prohibited and could land the accused in jail for up to seven years.
“Usually, people create fake wildlife products and cheat buyers to make quick money. This is one such case. Such wildlife products are made using plaster of paris, animal bones, and horns. They are sold in the market claiming them to be ivories luring buyers. This is one of them,” a source told Bangalore Mirror.
“We have arrested three and the investigation is on. We are waiting for FSL report to proceed further after knowing the authenticity of ivories. However, we have booked them under provisions of IWPA,” Ramalinge Gowda, police inspector, Wilson Garden police station told Bangalore Mirror.
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http://www.bangaloremirror.com/bangalore/others/Police-case-may-fall-flat-after-seized-ivory-turns-out-fake/articleshow/33192178.cms