Seoni, Sep 28 (PTI) Four persons were arrested on Thursday in Seoni in Madhya Pradesh for allegedly trying to sell tiger canines and bones, a forest department official said.

Seoni is home to the Pench Tiger Reserve, the official added.

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A man identified as Pradeep Masram (30) was held from Mohgaon on national highway (NH) 44 after a decoy customer was sent to verify a tip off that the former was selling tiger parts, Kurai Forest Range Officer Rahul Dharu said.

"A deal was struck for Rs 4,000 and Masram was held immediately after he handed over four canines of a tiger. His questioning led us to his associates Itarlal Masram (56), Chintaman Kokade (50) and Deep Singh Tekam. We recovered 25 pieces of tiger bones, most of which were hidden by the accused in a jungle," he said.

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"They have not admitted to killing any tiger. The accused claim they got the body parts from a forested area two months ago. We will seek their remand to unravel details of this network," Dharu informed.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)