Bhubaneswar: Three forest department officials who had been suspended for their involvement in alleged poaching and burning of the carcass of a wild tusker in the Similipal Tiger Reserve in Mayurbhanj district have been arrested.
The accused employees are Jenabil ranger in-charge Shiv Shankar Samal, forester Chandrabhanu Behera and forest guard Binod Kumar Das. The trio have been booked under the Wildlife Protection Act and the Indian Penal Code.
Reportedly, some of the forest staff burnt an elephant carcass and threw the charred remains to a nearby stream. It was suspected that the animal was killed by poachers and its carcass burnt to destroy evidence.
After preliminary investigation, the forest department had suspended the three accused forest employees.
