Overview
- The Directorate of Revenue Intelligence, which intercepted a suspected sale on Thursday, recovered four elephant tusks totaling about 17 kg plus intricately carved ivory articles in Banjara Hills, Hyderabad.
- Three people were apprehended at the scene and are being questioned by investigators to establish ownership and the route the ivory took before the attempted transaction.
- The items were seized under the Wild Life (Protection) Act, 1972, which bans trade in elephant ivory and makes commercial dealing in such articles illegal.
- DRI officials described the operation as intelligence‑led and said it forms part of wider nationwide efforts to disrupt illegal wildlife trafficking and trade in trophies and protected‑species products.
- Investigators will now focus on forensic tracing and questioning to determine the tusks’ source and whether this case connects to a broader trafficking network, with no charges or wider arrests reported so far.