Indian police say the rescued langurs were found inside sacks and were allegedly being moved through Assam as part of an international wildlife trafficking network.
A Bangladeshi national was among nine people arrested in India’s northeastern Assam state over the alleged trafficking of endangered golden langurs, police in India said.
The Bangladeshi man, identified as Mohammad Jamal, claimed to be a resident of Dhaka. Bangladesh’s Wildlife Crime Control Unit, a government body responsible for tackling wildlife-related offences, said it had no previous record of wildlife crime against him.
According to a report by Indian newspaper The Hindu, Assam Police’s Special Task Force and local police arrested nine people during a raid on Bamungaon Road under Sidli police station in Chirang district of western Assam around midnight on June 19.
Police recovered eight golden langurs from them, one of which died.
Indian officials said the golden langur is an endangered species listed under Schedule I of India’s Wildlife Protection Act, 1972. Each langur is worth about 1.6 million Indian rupees on the black market, according to the officials.
Asked about the case, WCCU Director Mohammad Mizanur Rahman told, “Our office has no previous information about any wildlife crime against him. However, according to information from WCCU members, we came to know that he previously traded birds legally.”
He said some people may have turned to illegal routes after international wildlife trade was banned.
But the WCCU has no information on whether Mohammad Jamal had previously been involved with such a network, Mizanur said.
“The matter is still at the stage of assumption. Our unit has found no information about any previous offence by him,” he said.
The WCCU director said information suggested Jamal had an office in Dhaka’s Mohammadpur area. After learning of the matter, unit officials made inquiries about him.
The investigation found that he had previously lived and conducted business there, but no longer resides in the area.
Mizanur said Jamal faces two allegations in connection with his arrest in India.
“One is wildlife trafficking. The other is illegally crossing the border and entering India. He was caught red-handed with a group of nine people in a wildlife trafficking incident,” he said.
Assam Police claimed the arrested people were members of an international wildlife trafficking ring. They were transporting the langurs in two vehicles, police said.
Initial information suggests the animals were planned to be sent to the international market through West Bengal.
The Hindu report quoted Kunjan Basumatary, a forest officer of Chirang division, as saying the rescued langurs had been kept inside sacks. They were later moved to cages.
The animals would soon be released into their natural habitat in the presence of a magistrate, he said.
The WCCU director said: “As the case in India involves both wildlife crime and illegal entry, there is little chance of easy release.”
