Gang involved in illegally selling 'lizard oil' busted

Wildlife officials also recover six lizards from accused’s possession

LAHORE:  

The Punjab Wildlife Department busted a gang involved in illegally selling the ‘oil of wild lizards’ in Lahore on Sunday.

During a raid, officials from the department arrested two accused identified as Sajjad Ali and Ghulam Sabir who were involved in the business of extracting oil from lizards, locally known as “sanda oil”.

The accused were booked under the Wildlife Act, said the officials, adding that six lizards had also been recovered from their possession.

The lizards were later handed over to the zoology department at Government Muhammadan Anglo Oriental (MAO) College.

In a separate development, wildlife officials recovered 50 rare breed of pigeons from Lahore airport.

Under the supervision of Lahore District Wildlife Officer Tanveer Janjua the special squad acted on a tip-off and arrested the accused who were involved in smuggling the birds from UAE to Pakistan.

The accused were slapped with a Rs20,000 fine for bringing the birds into the country without an import permit.

A few days ago, police arrested a man from Lahore for illegally selling birds online. Under the supervision of Punjab Honorary Game Warden Badar Munir, the Punjab Wildlife Department arrested Rana Waqar.

Police said 14 partridges and two swans were recovered from his possession.

A case has now been registered against the suspect under the Wildlife Act. A fine of Rs50,000 has also been imposed on him.

Munir said that the Punjab Wildlife Department is carrying out all its duties as per the vision set out by Prime Minister Imran Khan.

On February 27, wildlife department officials arrested a man for his alleged involvement in illegally trading birds in Vehari.