In a dramatic covert operation stretching across the icy Himalayan border, the Madhya Pradesh State Tiger Strike Force (STSF), in coordination with the Wildlife Crime Control Bureau (WCCB), has arrested international wildlife trafficker Yangchen Lachungpa, one of the most wanted wildlife offenders in Asia and a fugitive under an Interpol Red Notice.
The 43-year-old accused was caught on Tuesday in North Sikkim's Lachung, barely a few kilometres from the Indo-China border, following months of surveillance, intelligence operations and night-time manoeuvres in sub-zero temperatures.
Officials involved in the operation said the arrest unfolded in "movie-style conditions" with decoy teams, silent encirclement, intermittent phone signals and alleged local resistance. The fugitive allegedly attempted to destroy two mobile phones and a coded diary containing names of suspects, trafficking routes and hawala references. The operation received full cooperation from Sikkim Police, the Forest Department, district administration and the SSB in Sikkim and Siliguri, as heightened public sentiment demanded a secure and discreet transit.
Yangchen was taken to Gangtok after her arrest and produced before the court on Wednesday, following a medical examination. Her bail plea was rejected, and she was placed under transit remand to Madhya Pradesh, where further legal proceedings will continue in Narmadapuram. The arrest is being hailed as one of the most significant in India, as it is among the few cases where a wildlife criminal has been captured directly due to the issuance of an Interpol Red Notice. The notice was issued only two months earlier, on October 2.
The case against Yangchen dates back to July 13, 2015, when the Madhya Pradesh Forest Department registered a wildlife crime case in the Kamti Range of Satpura Tiger Reserve. The seizures included tiger skin, four pieces of tiger bones, tiger bone oil extract and 1.5 kg of pangolin scales. Another key accused, Jai Tamang, arrested in October 2015, confessed that he supplied wildlife contraband to Yangchen and was sheltered by her, placing her firmly at the centre of an organised trafficking network.
A total of 36 people were named in the case, and 27 were convicted by a Narmadapuram court in December 2022. But proceedings against Yangchen remained incomplete as she ran away soon after being briefly caught by the STSF in September 2017. After violating bail conditions, an arrest warrant was issued against her on July 29, 2019. Her continued evasion and suspected international links prompted WCCB to seek an Interpol Red Notice, which eventually led to her dramatic capture.
Investigators describe Yangchen as a crucial relay point in the transnational trafficking of tiger parts, pangolin scales, shahtoosh wool, red sanders and other high-value contraband. Her alleged network spanned Nepal, Tibet and Bhutan, with operational bases across Delhi, Siliguri, Gangtok, Kolkata, Kanpur, Itarsi and Hoshangabad. Officials said her name has surfaced repeatedly in international wildlife seizures. In 2015, Ethiopian authorities seized eight Indian tiger hides, at least three of which were suspected to have originated from Satpura. In 2013, Nepal Police seized five tiger skins and seven sacks of bones intended for smuggling to Tibet, one of which DNA tests traced back to tigress T-13 of Pench Tiger Reserve.
Authorities believe that payments for the trafficking network were routed through Kathmandu, Siliguri and border villages, and that wildlife stockpiles were hidden across Satpura, Pench, Betul and Tamia. They are now examining encrypted communication and the coded diary recovered during the arrest, which is expected to shed light on the financial backers, poaching syndicates and international buyers involved in the network.
Officials say Yangchen's arrest is expected to open the biggest breakthrough yet in dismantling a sophisticated and long-running wildlife trafficking chain. Her interrogation, they believe, will uncover both backward and forward linkages and may lead to more arrests across multiple states and countries.
