Four arrested in Andhra Pradesh for electrocuting sloth bear

Nandyala (Andhra Pradesh), Apr 6 (PTI) Four persons were arrested for allegedly electrocuting a sloth bear and possessing parts of its carcass, said an Andhra Pradesh Forest Department official on Saturday. Forest officials from Atmakuru Forest Division in Nandyala district arrested N Yesuratnam, M Shikamani, V Manu Sadhguna Rao and N Sai Kumar. “Based on an early morning tipoff on Friday, two of the accused persons, Shikamani and Rao, were nabbed near Surya Garden Lodge in Atmakuru and the dried genitals of the bear were recovered,” said the official in a press release.

Other seized parts included the bear’s severed head, chopped feet and bones. Also, Yesurathnam and Kumar, allegedly involved in selling the bear’s body parts, were arrested on Thursday night, the official told PTI. All the accused persons belong to Kothapalli mandal in Nandyala district. According to the forest officials, the bear was electrocuted 10 days ago by the accused in the agricultural field in Shivapuram village in Kothapalli mandal and the intention was to use its parts as an aphrodisiac.

The four accused persons were produced in the Atmakuru Court on Saturday, which remanded them.