Bangalore: Kodagu police arrested 10 men on Thursday and caught 10.39 kg of ambergris (often called whale vomit) for Rs 10 crore on the black market. Officials intercepted two cars near Heggala in Virajpet Taluk, as the suspects allegedly planned to sell contraband in Karnataka after transport from Kerala.
The defendants are from Thiruvananthapuram, Kannur, Kasaragod and Kozhikode and Bhadravathi of Karnataka in Kerala. Police have also confiscated two computers believed to have been used for illegal transactions.
The operation was led by personnel from Virajpet Dysp Mahesh Kumar, CPI Anoop Madappa, PSI Pramod and Virajpet Police Department. Ambergris is an illegally used minority secretions in high-end perfumes, traditional medicine and food – belonging to the Wildlife Protection Act, which prohibits its trade in India.
All 10 suspects were booked under relevant sections of the Wildlife Protection Act and continued to be detained with further investigation.
