300 turtles, tortoises recovered in Jessore
The Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) recovered about 300 turtles and tortoises and 24 kilograms of unknown white powder from a courier service office in Jessore yesterday.
The animals and power, which are said to be smuggled from India, were packed in unaddressed fruit cartoons, BGB's Maj Wahed told the correspondent.
“Somebody has brought them at the Continental Courier Service office but escaped sensing our presence”, he said, and BGM men could make no arrest.
About the white powder, Dr SM Rashid, chief executive of Centre for Advanced Research in Natural Resources and Management (CARINAM), said, “That could be powder of turtles shell used to make gelatin, the ingredient of jelly, cosmetics and cover of capsule”.
Wildlife experts say smugglers crush tiger bones into white powder to sell those on black markets in East Asian countries, as they believe it has medicinal value.
BGB handed over the animals to the Jessore office of the forest department.
“Now it is in our custody. But we do not know the name of the species yet. We have to check them physically”, said Dr Tapan Kumar Dey, conservator of forest (wildlife).
Earlier this month some 400 turtles and tortoises, set to be smuggled out to Thailand, were recovered from Shahjalal International Airport, and two Indian citizens were arrested.
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