2 cattle smugglers carrying Rs 50,000 bounty each held by STF

Meerut: Two alleged cattle smugglers carrying a reward of Rs 50,000 each were arrested by the Uttar Pradesh Special Task Force (STF) in Meerut on Saturday. The accused Padma, 45, a resident of Bulandshahr, and Sajjad Khan, 55, of Shamli, were wanted under the Gangsters Act in a case registered in Chandauli district, police said.Additional SP Brajesh Kumar Singh said, "Acting on intelligence inputs, an STF team arrested the duo near the Aurai Lala Nagar toll plaza on the Varanasi–Prayagraj road." During interrogation, the accused told police that they had been involved in cattle smuggling since 2017, along with an associate, Shamshad."They used to purchase animals and transport them illegally for slaughter. Padma was earlier arrested in a cattle slaughter case in Varanasi but resumed illegal activities, including cattle and liquor smuggling, after being released on bail," Singh said. Police said nearly half a dozen other cases were also registered against the two accused.