13 turtles rescued, man fined in Sonargaon drive

Upazila administration rescued 13 turtles of different sizes and fined a man for attempting to smuggle them in Narayanganj’s Sonargaon upazila on Saturday afternoon.

The fined is identified as Saber Marma, a resident of Mahalchhari upazila in Khagrachhari district.

Acting on a tip-off, a team of officials led by executive magistrate Fairuz Tasnim conducted a drive in the Meghna Toll Plaza area, detained and fined Saber Tk 10,000 for his involvement.

According to officials, Saber was transporting turtles with the intention of trafficking.

Assistant Commissioner (Land) and executive magistrate Fairuz Tasnim confirmed the incident and said that the recovered turtles were later released into the Meghna River at Baidyerbazar ghat.

“We have rescued 13 turtles of different sizes that were being illegally transported. The accused has been fined Tk 10,000 for violating the law, and the turtles have been released back into the river,” she said.

HMR/AM