Andhra Pradesh: 13 Red Sanders Smugglers Arrested in Crackdown

The major operation took place on Friday in the forest area of Naidupeta, where 10 smugglers were apprehended. Acting on orders from task force in-charge and Tirupati SP L. Subbarayudu, a team under the supervision of RSASTF SP P. Srinivas, conducted the operation. RI K. Krupa Nanda’s team including RSI K. Suresh Babu, carried out combing operations in the area.

The team set up a vehicle check post on the Chennai-Nellore National Highway near Thallampadu village in Sullurpeta beat. Two suspicious cars approached the checkpoint but stopped at a distance upon seeing the police. As the occupants attempted to flee, the task force personnel chased and apprehended 10 individuals.

The arrested smugglers, all from Vellore district, Tamil Nadu, were identified as R. Govinda Swamy (41), Vijaya Kumar (32), Sivakumar Velliyan (26), Kumar Muthu (29), Arul Muthusamy (23), Prabhu Raji (25), Ashok Kumar (29), M. Gopi (26), G. Chinnathambi (19), and Poovarasan Varadan (27). The police seized six red sandalwood logs and two cars from their possession. A search is ongoing for additional suspects who managed to escape.

In a separate incident on Thursday, Task Force police arrested three more smugglers near Srivari Mettu, close to Tirupati. The suspects were caught with seven red sandalwood logs and a car. Those arrested were identified as Gopi Ayyakannu, 26, Sivaraj Manikkam, 39, and Govindaraj, 32, all from Jamunamarathur in Tiruvannamalai district, Tamil Nadu. Cases have been registered at the Tirupati Task Force Police Station.