Endangered reptile rescued, 3 Mizo smugglers nabbed

NONGPOH: Ri-Bhoi Police arrested three smugglers and rescued an endangered lizard, belonging to the Tokay Gecko family, at Umsning at around 2:30 pm on Thursday.
The smugglers have been identified as Lalringzauli Fanai (43), Lalchawi Chhakhauk (51) and Kapthan Tlaung (41) all from Mizoram. The consignment was meant to be smuggled to Assam and delivered to a person identified only as John, but they failed to deliver  it since the recipient could not be traced.
It was while they were proceeding to Mizoram from Assam that the police intercepted the tourist vehicle (AS 01 EC 3366) they were travelling on at Umsning.
According to Police, the smugglers were caught along with the 14-inch long lizard weighing around 250 kilogram. The animal which was hidden inside the vehicle is worth Rs.50,000, police said.
The Tokay Gecko species of the lizard is protected under Schedule IV of the Wildlife Protection Act (WPA), 1972.