<p>Police in northern Bengaluru’s Mahalakshmi Layout have seized 1,580 kg of red sanders by arresting a five-member gang. </p>.<p>Siddaraju, 35, Devaraj, 22, Prajwal, 21, Venkatesh, 40, all from Mandya district, and Tamil Nadu native Govindaswamy, 46, are the arrested suspects. Vinayak Patil, Deputy Commissioner of Police (North), said the Mahalakshmi police raided three places based on specific inputs and arrested five people. </p>.<p>Two of the suspects carried red sanders in a sack and were waiting for trustworthy customers near Iskcon Temple. Suspecting something amiss, local residents called the police. The police rushed to the spot and took the suspects into custody. Based on their questioning, three more arrests were made. </p>.<p>Police said Govindaswamy had stored pieces of red sanders at his farmhouse in Tamil Nadu. The police raided the farmhouse and seized the red sanders. </p>.<p>Three red sanders logs were smuggled out of the Gonikoppal forest in Mandya district and taken to Govindaswamy’s farmhouse by a Mahindra Bolero. “The suspects badly needed money. So they brought two red sanders logs to Bengaluru in order to sell them to their known customers,” a police officer said. The SUV has also been seized. </p>.<p>It’s illegal to cut, store, transport and sell red sanders, which is mostly cultivated in Andhra Pradesh. </p>
<p>Police in northern Bengaluru’s Mahalakshmi Layout have seized 1,580 kg of red sanders by arresting a five-member gang. </p>.<p>Siddaraju, 35, Devaraj, 22, Prajwal, 21, Venkatesh, 40, all from Mandya district, and Tamil Nadu native Govindaswamy, 46, are the arrested suspects. Vinayak Patil, Deputy Commissioner of Police (North), said the Mahalakshmi police raided three places based on specific inputs and arrested five people. </p>.<p>Two of the suspects carried red sanders in a sack and were waiting for trustworthy customers near Iskcon Temple. Suspecting something amiss, local residents called the police. The police rushed to the spot and took the suspects into custody. Based on their questioning, three more arrests were made. </p>.<p>Police said Govindaswamy had stored pieces of red sanders at his farmhouse in Tamil Nadu. The police raided the farmhouse and seized the red sanders. </p>.<p>Three red sanders logs were smuggled out of the Gonikoppal forest in Mandya district and taken to Govindaswamy’s farmhouse by a Mahindra Bolero. “The suspects badly needed money. So they brought two red sanders logs to Bengaluru in order to sell them to their known customers,” a police officer said. The SUV has also been seized. </p>.<p>It’s illegal to cut, store, transport and sell red sanders, which is mostly cultivated in Andhra Pradesh. </p>
