5 TN men with tiger skin held by Kerala officials in Vandiperiyar

 Acting on a tip-off, officials of the Kerala wildlife departments alerted check post personnel, who in turn intensified checking of vehicles crossing Vandiperiyar. During the checks, check post personnel intercepted a car and checked the vehicle during which they found tiger skin. They seized the skin and arrested the five inmates. The accused were identified as Narayanan (71) of Virudhunagar, Sakkarai (63) of Ramanathapuram, Rathinavel (50) of Tirunelveli, Karuppasamy (54) of Kodaikanal and Murugan (42) of Kamuthi, sources said.

The Wildlife Warden of Megamalai Wildlife Division, Sachin Bhosale, when contacted, said no such occurrence was reported in the division and the crime could have been committed elsewhere. He said the Indian Tiger is an endangered animal and listed in Schedule I of the Wildlife Protection Act. Any person found guilty of such crime would have to undergo imprisonment for a period of three years and 10 years to the maximum based on his first time or second time offence or even being a habitual offender,he added.