Assam Police Recover 1.341 Kg Rhino Horn in Golaghat; Four Arrested

GOLAGHAT: In a major crackdown on illicit wildlife trade, Assam police have apprehended four persons with a rhino horn weighing 1.341 kg in Golaghat district’s Merapani.

Acting on a tip-off, Golaghat Police on Sunday conducted a raid at Kalyanpur under Merapani PS and seized one rhino horn weighing 1.341 kg.

The arrested individuals have been identified as Farooq Ali, Noor Jamal, Binod Barua, and Rupam Barua. Further investigation is underway to ascertain the degree of their involvement in wildlife trafficking and to identify any potential links to larger criminal networks.

The horn of an Indian rhino weighs 0.4-3 kg and can fetch up to USD 20,000 per kg in the international black market. International rhino horn trade was banned in 1977 by the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES).

According to the United Nations World Wildlife Crime Report 2024, rhino horn trade accounted for 29 percent of the observed wildlife trade during the 2015-2021 period, based on seizures.

In another similar incident, a man was detained with a rhinoceros horn, weighing 1.3 kg, from the Dholpur area of the Lakhimpur district earlier on December 6. A police team, led by Narayanpur OC Nipon Gogoi, recovered the horn from the residence of a local man, Neela Gogoi. The raid was conducted following reliable intelligence regarding illegal wildlife trade activities in the area.

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