The Forest Department arrested four persons on charges of hunting a spotted deer and attempting to sell its meat near Sirumugai in Coimbatore district on Wednesday.
The arrested persons were identified as Tamilselvan, Ajit Kumar, Arulkumar and Manikandan, all residents of Ammanpudur near Sirumugai.
According to the Department, the staff received specific information that a few men were attempting to sell venison at Ammanpudur falling under the Pethikuttai section of the Sirumugai forest range.
A team led by Sirumugai forest range officer K. Manoj rushed to the spot and apprehended the four men, who possessed 20 kg of deer meat. They had packed the venison in multiple plastic carry bags for sale.
“The staff arrested them before they could sell the meat,” said an official. The four men had hunted the deer by placing snare in a land outside the forest.
The Forest Department registered a wildlife offence report and arrested the four men. Ajit Kumar, Arulkumar and Manikandan had previously been involved in another wildlife offence in 2023.
The four men were produced before judicial magistrate, Mettupalayam, and they were remanded in judicial custody in the Coimbatore Central Prison.
