Two persons have been arrested for poaching a tiger in Metikuppe range of Nagarahole National Park yesterday. Based on a tip-off, Forest officials arrested Puttaiah and Dinesh and recovered skin, nails and canines of tiger from them. The incident occurred on the night of Mar. 3 and the arrest was made by the forest  mobile squad.

A search has been launched to nab Sanna, Boliga, Swamy and Balu, who are said to be involved in the case. Dinesh is said to be a habitual offender. He has cases against him for timber smuggling and was also earlier caught in sandalwood theft case and was out on bail.

According to Nagarahole National Park Director S. Manikantan, the accused hailed from Naganahalli and GR tribal hamlets. He said that strict vigil and constant monitoring had put an end to poaching. “When we grilled the accused, we found that there is no match between their statements and the materials seized. We have sent the samples of the carcass for DNA test and the analysis is expected to throw more light on what has happened,” he said.