Forest Section Officer arrested for ‘accepting’ ₹4 lakh bribe

The Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) officials caught Narsapuram Forest Section Officer while he was allegedly accepting a bribe of ₹4 lakh from a sawmill owner, in West Godavari district on Tuesday.

Forest officer Sadu Suresh Kumar allegedly demanded ₹5 lakh bribe from the complainant to prevent the seizure of his sawmill.

The complainant, who was running a sawmill at Pennada village in West Godavari district, had cut a teakwood brought by a farmer from his own field. When the farmer was transporting the teakwood, the Bhimavaram Forest Department officials seized the wood, along with a four-wheeler. Later, the Forest authorities stopped the operations of the sawmill.

The accused demanded ₹5 lakh from the complainant to avoid seizure and resume operations at the sawmill.

The ACB officials caught Sadu Suresh Kumar while he was accepting the bribe at his residence, on Tuesday. The accused was arrested and would be produced in the ACB Court in Rajahmahendravaram, the ACB officials said in a press release.