2 hornbills rescued in Ctg, trafficker gets 4 months in jail
A mobile court sentenced a wildlife trafficker to four months in jail after he was arrested along with two endangered hornbill birds in Chattogram's Chandanaish upazila early today.
Jimran Md Shaikh, assistant commissioner (land) of Chandanaish upazila, led the mobile court and handed down the verdict to Mizanur Rahman, 47, reports our Chattogram staff correspondent.
Additional Superintendent of Police (DSB) Abu Tyeb Md Arif said, "Acting on a tip-off, police installed a check post at Gachbaria College Gate on Chattogram-Cox's Bazar Highway and stopped a passenger bus of Shyamoli Paribahan around 12:00 midnight.
"Later, Mizan was held with two hornbill birds from the bus," he added.
The hornbill birds were handed over to the forest department.
Anwar Hossain, officer-in-charge of Chandanaish Police Station, said the birds were caught from a remote area in Bandarban's Alikadam.
The two birds were supposed to be taken to Gazipur district via Chattogram's Chakaria, the OC said.
The carrier was offered Tk 2,000 for each bird, he added.
On May 26, another mobile court sentenced two wildlife traffickers to six months' imprisonment after four endangered hornbill birds were rescued from them in Chattogram's Banshkhali.
Asked about the two incidents, Sudipta Sarkar, additional superintendent of police in Chattogram, told The Daily Star today: "Investigators and the forest department found several syndicates comprising international rackets involved in the smuggling. And wildlife traffickers work in several stages -- from collecting to sales -- adopting different techniques to dodge law enforcers.
"We cannot file any lawsuit directly if there is no wildlife killing, according to the law. And taking advantage of that, smugglers get involved in the racket again once they walk out of jail," he said.
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