6.5kg ambergris seized, 2 held

Bengaluru: Central Crime Branch (CCB) sleuths arrested two men from Tamil Nadu and recovered 6.5kg of sperm whale’s ambergris.
According to police, C Selvaraj, 35, and M Hariharan, 24, both from Krishnagiri, were caught while trying to sell ambergris in VV Puram, south Bengaluru. The accused said they had purchased it from a man in Kerala last year. Ambergris is found the intestinal tract of sperm whales and used to make perfume.Police, however, said they are yet to trace the potential buyers. “There is a huge demand for ambergris in the perfume market. Yet it is strange that we can’t identify the buyers. The accused told us they had purchased ambergris for around Rs 2 lakh from a Kerala man and were trying to sell it for Rs 20 lakh. The black market seems to be more active in coastal cities,” a senior cop said.
Man arrested for
selling 25kg ivory
A 58-year-old man was arrested on charges of trying to sell 25kg of ivory at Girinagar, south Bengaluru, on Wednesday. The accused is K Somashekhar of Harohalli in Ramanagara district. “He was carrying the ivory in a gunny bag and waiting for a buyer in an eucalyptus grove at Saptagiri Layout,” a police officer said.