21 arrested for logging

21 arrested for logging

BENGKULU, Bengkulu: The police have arrested 21 people on
charges of stealing timber from forests.

Chief detective of the Bengkulu police command Capt. Achmadi
Nurdin said the authorities have also seized 90 cubic meters of
timber, two chain saws and two rafts from the suspects.

Thirteen suspects were caught red-handed loading their loot
into rafts at the Linau tributary, he said. They will be brought
to trial in the near future.

"We mean to teach them a hard lesson, so that others will
learn that stealing does not pay," he was quoted by Antara as
saying.

Forests make up 49.4 percent of Bengkulu's two million hectare
area. (pan)