The tiger skin seized by forest officials in Mancherial

The tiger skin seized by forest officials in northern district of Mancherial in Telangana was that of a Royal Bengal tiger that fell prey to poachers who electrocuted it by laying a trap of barbed wire connected to a power source, police confirmed on Friday.

Along with the prime suspect Sailu, eight others who aided and abetted him in poaching the big cat were picked up by the Ramagundam Police Commissionerate Task Force sleuths from different parts of Mancherial. The skeletal remains of the tiger, which weighed more than 120 kilos when it was alive, were seized by the police based on Sailu's confession. Sailu and his accomplices had set up barbed wire for about 700 metres on the outskirts of Shivaram village in Jaipur mandal of Mancherial district and connected it to power source, said Ramagundam Police Commissioner V. Satyanarayana. The trap was reportedly laid on January 8. The next day, Sailu and his gang found the tiger electrocuted.“It was an adult male of about four years. The gang led by Sailu carried it into nearby thick bushes 200 yards away,”

Later, they skinned it and collected its nails. The accused approached another gang and stuck a deal for ?25 lakh to sell its skin and nails

On a tip-off from an NGO, the Mancherial forest officials picked up a person and based on his admission seized the skin. Stitching up the leads provided by Forest Department, the Ramagundam Police Commissioner’s Task Force team conducted raids at different places in Mancherial and nabbed eight others.

Investigators are sceptical of Sailu's claims that he laid the trap for wild boars and deer but the tiger got electrocuted. Initially, he maintained that he used to put the barbed wire to prevent crop damage.

Well planned

“The point where the tiger got killed was nearly one kilometre from the Godavari river bank and there were no fields in the vicinity of that wire,” the Commissioner explained. The knives and tools seized from the gang suggested it was planned.

This suggested that the gang knew about the possible movements of the tiger. Who tipped them off about this is another question police are trying to find answers. “The nails are yet to be recovered. We suspect more persons are involved behind this,” the Commissioner said hinting that a few more arrests are in the pipeline.