Korba: In a major breakthrough in a sensational leopard poaching, the Chhattisgarh Forest Department has arrested three persons including a father-son duo for allegedly poisoning a leopard to death and taking away the skin, nails and teeth in the Katghora forest division of Korba district of the state.
Kumar Nishant, DFO, Katghora Forest Division said that they have arrested the three accused identified as Govind Singh Gond (52), his son Lal Singh (23) and Ramprasad (44), brother-in-law of accused Govind Singh in connection with the death of a 7-year-old male leopard whose body was found on Thursday in the forest of village Raha of Chaitma range in the forest under Katghora forest division area.
Six nails, two teeth and part of its skin were were missing which had pointed to a possible organ trafficking.
DFO, Katghora said that during investigation around the place where the leopard's body was found, the team found the body of a calf whose half body was eaten by a wild animal. This is where the officials became suspicious. It was also revealed during investigation that poison was found in the calf's dead body. In the subsequent investigation, the team zeroed in on accused Govoind Singh who, during interrogation, confessed to have poisoned the leopard as part of a revenge killing as the leopard had mauled his calf to death.
After the leopard's body was found on Thursday, the Forest Department team reached the spot and found the severed tail of the leopard at some distance from the spot. “Postmortem of the leopard was done. The postmortem report confirmed that the leopard was killed by poisoning. The leopard was cremated under the provisions of the Wildlife Protection Act,” DFO Kumar Nishant said.
