Notorious red sander smuggler nabbed

The proclaimed offender is wanted in 19 cases

Tirupati: The Task Force police arrested Balu alias Balaraju (37), a proclaimed offender engaged in red sander smuggling, at Merlapaka 20 km from here on Friday.

Tirupati Urban SP SV Rajasekhara Babu told press persons that Balu, who is wanted in19 red sander smuggling cases, had been evading the police for long. He was a truck driver in ARC Parcel Service before joining the gang of Chennai-based smuggler Sahul Hamid, who was operating in Chittoor and Nellore districts. Balu first joined Sahul as a driver, when he was engaged in smuggling red sanders to other countries, through sea.

He used to transport red sanders clandestinely in four trucks of Sahul to various ports including Thuthukudi, Kandala and Mumbai.

However, after Sahul was forced to flee with family to Dubai after a bloody clash with another notorious Chennai-based red sander smuggler, Balu took up smuggling to Dubai, from where the logs are diverted to other countries.

The SP said the police launched a manhunt to track down 18 other smugglers who were part of the Sahul network, operating in Nellore and Chittoor districts. They were found to be smuggling red sanders from the two districts to various ports for shipping to Dubai. Twenty cases were registered against Sahul and his 18 men. A special team, headed by Renigunta CI Ramkumar has been set up to track them down.

The SP said that after Sahul shifted his base to Dubai, Balu took over two of his trucks and handed them over to his brother-in-law Ramesh, for use at Thuthukudi.

The district police initiated the process for issuing a `red corner' notice against Sahul, who by expanding his network to Chennai and Bengaluru, has turned a major importer of red sanders since 2010. Cops are planning to take help of Interpol for his arrest.I