3 Andhra men arrested in red sanders smuggling racket; cops seize wood worth Rs 25 lakh in Hoskote

Bengaluru: The Hoskote police on Wednesday arrested three men involved in an inter-state red sanders smuggling racket and seized 1,093 kg of wood worth about Rs 25 lakh.

The arrested are Ajaz Shariff and Fayaz Shariff, both 47 years, and Sadiq Khan, 34, all from Andhra Pradesh. They were caught red-handed while packing the wood at a courier office in Hoskote.

The police said the wood, sourced from a forest range in Andhra Pradesh, was meant to be transported to a northern state. Once in Karnataka, the smugglers packed it in plastic wrappers of different companies to avoid detection.

Officials said the three are habitual offenders. A case has been registered, and further investigation is underway.

"The arrested have over 75 cases in Andhra Pradesh. The investigation is on, and a few others are to be arrested," said CK Baba, Superintendent of Police, Bengaluru Rural.

"Earlier, they used to transport it by themselves. But they have changed the modus operandi and used a courier this time," he added.