Youth held with 30kgs of pangolin shells

NT Correspondent

Bengaluru: A youth was arrested by the Hanumanth Nagar police for allegedly possessing and selling Pangolin shells in the city. The accused was identified as Kiran Rama Naik, 25, a resident of Siddapur taluk of Uttara Kannada district.

The city police received credible information about a person suspiciously wandering near the Bangalore Water Supply & Sewerage Board (BWSSB) payment centre adjacent to PES College in Hanumantha Nagar, holding a heavy bag.

A team of cops approached him for an inquiry and while checking his bag, found 30 kilograms of Pangolin shells. It was revealed that the accused was waiting for a prospective customer to sell the shells.

Pangolin is a harmless and endangered animal that is hunted for medicine, decoration and meat in Asia and Africa. These anteaters are mostly found in northern India, northern part of Southeast Asia and southern China. Pangolin are also found in in Karnataka.