Three including wildlife officer nabbed over timber racket
June 20, 2018 12:43 pm
A wildlife officer and minor employee of Department of Wildlife Conservation have been arrested along with a civilian, for illegally felling three oak trees (Goda Kirala) in the Inamaluwa State Forest Reserve.
Dambulla Special Task Force (STF) made the arrest in Etawarahena area in Dambulla, when the suspects were transporting timber in a tractor.
12 logs, 3 suspects, a tractor and 2 motorcycles used by the suspects have been taken into custody and handed over to the Sigiriya police, stated the STF.
According to the STF, the arrested suspects were employed at the Wildlife Conservation Office in Inamaluwa and have taken part in illegal timber racket of many other trees in the area.
The suspects were not in possession of any license for logging timber, said the police.
The STF has received information pertaining to the logging of rare Indian Elm trees in the state forest reserve and selling them at high prices for industrial wood carving purposes.
At the time of the arrest, the wildlife officers have been transporting the logs in a tractor while publicly feigning an arrest of timber thieves.
The wildlife officers told the police that they were transporting teak timber logs of a fallen tree in the forest reserve under the teak tree removal program.
Later, when the STF went to inspect the said fallen tree, they uncovered many trees that had been cut down.
During the re-interrogation, the wildlife officers have told the STF that they were transporting the timber for the construction of a wildlife office. The STF said the arrest was made as the suspects did not possess any relevant license.
