Police in Balakot recovered a black bear cub being illegally smuggled from the Kaghan Valley to Peshawar on Tuesday and arrested four individuals involved in the act, officials confirmed.
According to Balakot SHO Sadaqat Nisar, the police intercepted a suspicious vehicle at the Balakot forest barrier based on a tip-off. During the search, officers discovered the bear cub wrapped in a piece of cloth, concealed inside the car.
The arrested individuals were identified as Khan Mohammad, Javed Khan, Zubair Ali, and Shakeel Javed. An FIR was lodged against them under wildlife protection laws, citing their attempt to illegally transport the animal.
The rescued cub was later handed over to the wildlife department and safely released into the Dodial pheasantry for rehabilitation.
SHO Nisar stated that while the suspects were briefly taken into custody, they were later released after one of them paid a fine of Rs210,000 to the wildlife department as per legal provisions.
Wildlife smuggling remains a concern in the alpine forests of the Kaghan Valley, where animals, including endangered species like the black bear, often stray into inhabited areas.
The act is a clear violation of Pakistan’s Biodiversity Act, 2015, which strictly prohibits the capture and trade of wild animals.
