Sangli: The Forest Department in Maharashtra here has arrested a man for allegedly raping a four and half feet long Iguana inside the Sahyadri Tiger Project.
Sangli forest officials on Thursday giving details of the Gabha area incident in Gothane said: A CCTV footage showed four armed men roaming in the forest.
Taking them to be poachers, the forest officials rushed to the spot and managed to arrest one of them, as the rest fled.
When the mobile phone of the person in custody was checked, the forest officials came across the shocking incident. There was a video shot by the same mobile showing one of the four involved in "inhuman and disgusting" act, in which there was a recording of rape on a four and half feet long Iguana.
Officers also found photographs of rabbit, porcupine, deer in the mobile.
Following a tip off, rest of the three were picked up from Hativ village in Ratnagiri district and two pistols, two motorcycles were seized from them. The four were identified as Sandeep Tukaram Pawar, Mangesh Kamtekar, Akshay Kamtekar, Ramesh Tukaram Ghag.
Divisional forest officer Vishal Mali said this was a rare instant of such an incident in the particular forest sectors.
"We will produce them in the court and take all possible help from law experts. Since Iguana is a reserved species like tiger and lion under the Wildlife Security Act 1972, that could invite seven years of rigorous imprisonment for the crime. (UNI)
