Accused escapes from officials on the way to central prison in Shivamogga
A man remanded in judicial custody in connection with a forest offence escaped from Forest Department officials at Battemallappa in Hosanagara taluk on Wednesday. Officials
A man remanded in judicial custody in connection with a forest offence escaped from Forest Department officials at Battemallappa in Hosanagara taluk on Wednesday. Officials of the Kattinahole section of the Kollur Wildlife Range had taken Venkatesh, 36, a resident of Adugodi in Hosanagara taluk, into custody in connection with a forest offence.
He was produced before the JMFC (Judicial Magistrate First Class) court in Hosanagara on Wednesday and remanded in judicial custody. Deputy Range Forest Officers (DyRFOs) Sunil D. Kumbar and Ibrahim, forest watcher Ayan Bedebbhai, and anti-poaching camp staff member Chakrapani were escorting him in an official vehicle, driven by Nagendra, to the Central Prison in Shivamogga.
On the way, around 2 p.m., Venkatesh told the officials that he was feeling hungry and requested them to get him something to eat. The staff stopped the vehicle in front of a hotel at Battemallappa. DyRFOs Sunil Kumbar and Ibrahim left the vehicle to fetch food from the hotel. In their absence, Venkatesh pushed Ayan Bedebbhai and Chakrapani, who remained in the vehicle, and jumped out.
The staff searched for him in the area but could not trace him. Mr. Kumbar later filed a complaint with the Hosanagara police, who booked a case against Venkatesh on charges of intentionally resisting arrest and assaulting public servants.
The BriefWire