Crime: 10,000ft of illegal timber seized

MANSEHRA:

Police and forest authorities have seized around 10,000 square feet of illegally-cut timber worth hundreds of thousands of rupees.

Siran Valley Forest Division’s District Forest Officer Raja Imtaiz said that the timber was seized with the help of Elite Force police in nine raids conducted in the villages of Munda Guch, Treda and Saidabad.

DSP Bakhtiar Khan said that the timber was illegally cut from nearby forests and shifted to five saw machines and four warehouses in the villages. The timber was to be transported to different areas across the country via Tarbela Lake, he added.

The DSP said no arrests have been made as the warehouse and saw machine owners are yet to be traced. The timber has been shifted to the forest office and a case has been registered.

Published in The Express Tribune, April 22^nd, 2012.