UP STF arrests Mumbai smuggler and seizes seven falcons in Lucknow
The Uttar Pradesh Special Task Force recovered seven rare falcons valued at approximately Rs 14 crore during an operation in the state capital.
The Uttar Pradesh Special Task Force (STF) arrested Mumbai-based wildlife smuggler Firoz Musarrat Khan in Lucknow and recovered seven rare falcons, according to The New Indian Express.
Khan, a resident of Byculla in Mumbai, was apprehended at a house in Iradat Nagar under the Madiaon police station area.
Additional SP of the STF, Avanishwar Srivastava, said the accused was part of an interstate network that trafficked protected birds and wildlife.
The operation was a joint effort between the STF and the Wildlife Crime Control Bureau (WCCB), Lucknow, following a specific tip-off.
ASP Srivastava stated that Khan allegedly claimed the syndicate collected birds from forest regions in Gorakhpur, Lakhimpur Kheri, and Sitapur to send through Mumbai to countries including Dubai, Saudi Arabia, and Bahrain.
The seized falcons are a protected species under Schedule I of the Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972. A case has been registered at Madiaon police station under several sections of the Act.