Accused got inspired from Film 'Pushpa'…
On Tuesday, A gang of seven smugglers got inspired by Allu Arjun's movie 'Pushpa' and was arrested from Mathura in Uttar Pradesh, sources from the Special Task Force (STF) said.
On Monday, the gang was involved with smuggling red sandalwood and was held on a tip off from Highway Police Station.
Arrested accused were identified as Deepak alias Dalveer, Ajit Kumar Yadav, Sumit alias Ram, Chandra Pratap alias Babbu, Sumit Das, Jitendra and Ranjit.
The operation was conducted jointly by the STF team and a forest department team, following which 563 kg of red sandalwood worth about Rs. 2 crore was recovered from the gang.
The accused were caught in Mathura to sell the stock of sandalwood.
In a statement, the STF said all the accused confessed that they took inspiration from 'Pushpa: The rise'. They further decided on making a quick buck by stealing the expensive wood.
The gang kept the wood with one Rana, a resident of Delhi, who holds a timber chamber licence.
The STF further revealed the gang transported the red sandalwood illegally from Andhra Pradesh and sold it at religious places and nearby areas of Mathura only.
Meanwhile, a First Information Report (FIR) has been registered against the gang under relevant sections of the IPC and other acts.
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