13 held for smuggling scales of endangered Pangolin

With the arrest of 13 people, the state forest department today claimed to bust an inter-state gang allegedly involved in smuggling the scales of endangered animal, Indian Pangolin, to China.
The accused, who were nabbed yesterday, used to purchase an Indian Pangolin at Rs 500 to 1500 per kg from poachers in Chhindwara and Balaghat districts of the state besides Chhattisgarh, Chhindwara Chief Conservator of Forests Chitranjan Tyagi said.
Their leader Nafiz Ahmed (35), a corporator of Chandamata town in the district, used to sell scales of the animal to his aides in Kolkata at Rs 6,000 per kg, who in turn sold the scales for Rs 60,000 in Chinese market, he said.

According to the officer, scales of the animal fetches huge price in the international market as it is used as an aphrodisiac.
34-year-old Ramkrishna, a resident of village Bichwa at Saoner town of Nagpur in Maharashtra, was first nabbed by the police in October with 20 kg scales of Indian Pangolin, Tyagi said.
The other members of his gang were arrested thereafter upon his interrogation, he said.
Among the arrested include - Jamal Iqbal (59), Danish Jamal (24) - both hailing from Kolkata and Paritosh Bengali (29) and Pankhajoor (30) hailing from Bastar in Chhattisgarh and Rayees Khan (23) who hails from here, the CCF said.