A woman accused of being one of the world’s most wanted traffickers of tiger body parts has been arrested in India, officials have said.<\/p>\n
Yangchen Lachungpa, who was detained earlier this week, is accused of playing a critical role in building trafficking corridors leading out of the country to smuggle tiger parts out of the country.<\/p>\n
Lachungpa had been on Interpol’s most-wanted list, and her bail plea was rejected during a court appearance on Thursday.<\/p>\n
Wildlife officials said that Ms Yangchen’s arrest was a major breakthrough in the battle against poaching in India.<\/p>\n
It is rare for a woman to be arrested in connection with the illegal trade of animal body parts.<\/p>\n
Police had been looking for Lachungpa for several years. She was arrested following a co-ordinated operation between the Madhya Pradesh State Tiger Strike Force and the Wildlife Crime Control Bureau, the environment ministry said on Friday.<\/p>\n
It added that Lachungpa was a key member of an organised trafficking network which has links to Nepal, Tibet and Bhutan, as well having operations in several Indian cities including Delhi.<\/p>\n
Lachungpa had been arrested in 2017but disappeared after being granted bail.<\/p>\n
Another man accused at the time, Jai Tamang, and who was arrested in 2015, told police that he had given Lachungpa wildlife contraband in exchange for shelter.<\/p>\n
Tiger parts are in demand in China where they have been used in traditional medicine.<\/p>\n
The International Fund for Animal Welfare says that there were 26 documented cases of tiger poaching in 2024, with 56 cases the proceeding year.<\/p>\n
But it adds that there were likely “many more” tigers were likely poached as many are found dead without evidence of poaching.<\/p>\n