Red sanders smuggler held

​Tirupati: Police arrested a notorious red sanders smuggler Mahaboob Basha (40) during vehicle check, near Nindra, 20 km away from Tamil Nadu border, in the early hours of Thursday. A police party led by Nindra SI Balakrishna while checking the vehicles, grew suspicious when three persons jumped from a truck and fled.

Following which, the police immediately arrested Mahaboob Basha who is on the wheels and seized 20 red sanders logs from the Eicher truck. According to SI Balakrishna, at first they found nothing but an empty lorry. However, the close inspection of the vehicle led to the finding of an inner cabin where police recovered 20 red sanders logs.

In the inquiry that followed, smuggler Mahaboob Basha confessed that he used to carry the red sanders logs in the truck’s secret cabin to Tamil Nadu and Karnataka for supplying them to international red sanders operatives. SI Balkrishna said Mahaboob Basha, based in Bengaluru had been smuggling red sanders logs for the last five years. Every time, he will carry about two tonnes of red sanders logs in the secret cabin of the truck, he added.