Cops seize 10 tonnes of smuggled sandalwood

GURGAON: In a major haul, police seized 10 tonnes red sandalwood worth Rs 16 crores from a container near Subhash Chowk on Tuesday night. The driver of the container has been arrested. The smuggler is on the run.
Police said it was tiped-off on Tuesday night about a large quantity of red sandalwood being smuggled through Gurgaon, following which they set up barricades near Subhash Chowk.They apprehended the container, and found 10 tonnes of sandalwood concealed among refrigerators. Cops said the sandalwood was of a very high quality and its market value is approximated to be Rs 1,500 to Rs 1,800 per kg.
The driver, Naresh, 34, of Balamba village in Rohtak is being interrogated for further information. “He said he was driving from a godown near Hayatpur village in Gurgaon and was told to take the consignment to Kolkata. The godown owner Dilbagh Sharma worked with four others. All have been identified. We are conducting raids to nab them,” said ACP (crime) Rajesh Kumar.
An FIR has been lodged under appropriate sections of the IPC and the Indian Forest Act with Sadar police station.
This is the second consignment of red sandalwood that has been seized in the past one week. When asked if Gurgaon is becoming a favoured passageway for sandalwood smugglers, Kumar said, “Even if two cases have come to light in recent past, there is no evidence to suggest they are connected”.