( Recently 3 Two Month Old tiger cubs rescued were rescued in Bangladesh capital, read the whole scene of crime )
At least 400 forest workers, including a number of fishermen, are reportedly working for an international tiger smuggling racket in the Sundarbans, Bangladesh forest department sources have said.
Some of the suspects had been trained to hunt down tigers and trap cubs, as well as deer and other animals from the Sundarbans, designated as a World Heritage Site.
For the last 20 to 30 years, several groups of animal smugglers have been entering the mangrove forest in the guise of fishermen, wood cutters and honey collectors by arranging passes from the local forest offices.
A section of officials and employees of the forest department are reportedly helping the poachers.
According to local sources, on May 12, a seven-member team, headed by gang leader Ayub Ali, entered the forest and trapped three tiger cubs from Holdebuniya area.
In the process, one of the gang members was killed by the mother tigress as she went berserk in search of her cubs.
Ali sold the cubs to Nuruzzaman Gazi, a former member of Raznagar Union Parishad of Shyamnagar sub-district in southwestern Satkhira district, for 30,000 taka, said a source. Gazi received 14,000 taka and promised the rest of the amount on further sale of cubs.
However, Gazi did not pay the remaining amount to Ali. In frustration the gang reported the matter to the Rapid Action Battalion (RAB).
On June 11, a RAB team raided a house in the Shyamoli area of Dhaka and arrested wildlife trader Zakir Hossain and recovered the three cubs.
Hossain and his mother, Jahanara Begum, who was arrested later, were sentenced to two years in prison by RAB magistrate, for trying to smuggle the cubs.
