KOCHI: Forest officers in Kerala exhumed the carcass of a wild male elephant from a personal rubber property based mostly on a tip-off in Thrissur district’s Vazhakkode in a suspected case related to ivory commerce on Friday

When forest officers in Machad vary excavated the stays of the male elephant from an property belonging to Maniyanchira Roy, they found that half of one among its tusks was lacking. Suspecting the involvement of ivory hunters, a message was handed to all forest ranges within the state about current tusk-related arrests. Later officers of the Kodanad vary in neighbouring Ernakulam district confirmed that they retrieved half a tusk from 4 individuals in Pattimattam on July 1 throughout a transaction.

“When we questioned Akhil Mohan, the first accused, he admitted that it was the same tusk belonging to the elephant buried in the estate in Thrissur. Akhil, along with the second accused, was trying to sell the ivory while two other accused were buying it when we apprehended them at a house in Pattimattam based on information. The tusk was also retrieved,” mentioned Geo Basil Paul, the Kodanad vary officer.

Akhil, an confederate of Roy, was the one who chopped off half the tusk of the elephant whereas burying it, confirmed Paul. While Akhil is in custody for questioning, the three others are in remand.

A senior forest official mentioned the wild elephant, round 15 years previous, is suspected to have died when it got here into contact with an electrical fence. The accused, together with Roy, might have arrange a entice meant for wild boars, however as a substitute the elephant was killed. Postmortem report and additional investigations will show the reason for loss of life, she mentioned. The rubber property owned by Roy adjoins a forest by means of which wild elephants transfer recurrently.

“We have received some clues that strengthen the fact that the elephant was killed,” Forest Minister AK Saseendran informed reporters.

The Kodanad officer mentioned that Roy is presently absconding and is suspected to have fled to Goa, the place his spouse works as a instructor. A staff of the forest division will depart for Goa to apprehend him.