Suspected sandalwood smuggler shot dead by forest guard in Bengaluru's Bannerghatta

A suspected sandalwood smuggler was shot dead by a forest guard at the Bannerghatta National Park in southern Bengaluru early on Wednesday, police officials said. His accomplice managed to run for his life. 

The two-member gang swung a machete and a saw when three forest security personnel tried to nab them. The guard then opened fire, killing one of the gang members — Thimmarayappa, 40, of Natuvarahalli in Kolar district's Malur taluk. 

Forest security personnel on night patrol were drawn by the constant sound of tree-cutting in the Kalkere region around 1.15 am on Wednesday. When they got close to the spot, they found that the duo had already axed a sandalwood tree and was chopping it into pieces. 

"There are a good number of sandalwood trees in the Kalkere region, and thieves have eyed them for a long time," Mallikarjun Baldandi, Superintendent of Police, Bengaluru District, said. "Forest guards and watchers regularly watch them and increase foot patrolling." 

It was pitch dark, and the forest security personnel couldn't trace the suspects' exact location. So they shouted at them and asked them to surrender. The suspects threw a saw at them instead. The guard fired a warning shot, which was retaliated with the throwing of a machete. Sensing danger, the guard took a calculated risk and fired in the direction of the sound, a police officer close to the investigation said. 

The bullet hit Thimmarayappa in the stomach, inflicting fatal injuries, according to the officer. 

Police are now digging into Thimmarayappa's past to ascertain if he had a criminal record. Forensic experts collected samples in the presence of a SOCO (Scenes Of Crime Officer) team, the officer added. 

Police believe that the suspects jumped the Bannerghatta National Park compound near Bannerghatta Road and reached the forest area. Police didn't find any vehicles parked nearby.