Four Arrested With Deer Traps in Sundarbans Operation

Forest officials have arrested four suspected poachers in Bangladesh’s eastern Sundarbans after recovering deer-hunting traps, a boat, approximately two and a half maunds of crabs and banned crab-catching equipment during a pre-dawn operation.

The arrests were made in the Mrigamari Canal area of the eastern Sundarbans on Saturday, 4 July. The suspects were later produced before a court in Bagerhat following the filing of a case under the Forest Act.

According to Dipan Chandra Das, Assistant Conservator of Forests (ACF) and Chandpai Range Officer of the Eastern Sundarbans Forest Division, the operation was launched after forest personnel received confidential intelligence about suspected illegal activity in the protected forest. Rangers from the Chandpai Forest Station and the Andharmanik Eco-Tourism Centre jointly conducted the raid during the early hours of the morning.

During the operation, the forest team intercepted a boat in the Mrigamari Canal and detained four individuals on the spot. A subsequent search of the vessel led to the recovery of a 300-foot deer-snaring net, locally known as a mala trap, along with seven baskets containing around two and a half maunds of crabs. Officers also seized 50 banned crab-catching devices, locally known as charu, as well as other equipment believed to have been used for illegal activities inside the forest.

The arrested individuals have been identified as Farid Hawlader, 30, Ataur Khan, 28, Mojam Jomadder, 29, and Ruhul Jomadder, 30, all residents of South Chila village in Mongla Upazila. Forest authorities said Farid Hawlader has previously been named in multiple cases.

Divisional Forest Officer of the Eastern Sundarbans Forest Division, Md Rezaul Karim Chowdhury, said the suspects had entered the protected forest illegally despite an ongoing three-month government ban on fishing and aquatic resource collection in the Sundarbans. According to the Forest Department, the group was allegedly attempting to hunt deer while simultaneously collecting crabs in violation of existing conservation regulations.

Officials said the seasonal restrictions are intended to protect wildlife and aquatic biodiversity during a critical breeding period. They stressed that illegal entry, poaching and the use of prohibited fishing gear pose significant threats to the fragile ecosystem of the Sundarbans, the world’s largest mangrove forest.

The Forest Department has reaffirmed that enforcement drives will continue throughout the restricted period to curb wildlife crime and ensure the protection of the forest’s biodiversity. Authorities also warned that anyone found violating forest conservation laws would face legal action.