Two Indians among six arrested with Walla Patta

Yasaratne Gamage

The Police Special Task Force (STF) on Monday arrested six suspects, including two Indian nationals and recovered 13,480 Kg of Walla Patta ( Gyrinops Walla ) barks and 6 Kgs of Sandal wood valued at around Rs 200 million while the stock had been stored in two houses in Kolonnawa to be smuggled out of the country.

The protected endemic plant traditionally used for medicinal purposes is banned from possession or transport.

The tree produces resin called Agarwood that is used to manufacture the world’s most expensive perfumes and the plant fetches a high price.

The arrests were made on Monday night under the direction of STF Commandant R W M C Ranawana and the supervision of SP Waruna Jayasundara while an STF team led by IP Nadeeka de Silva raided the two houses in Cumarathunga Munidasa Mawatha and Samaranayake Mawatha in Kolonnawa where the Walla Patta was detected.

The suspects were handed over to the Wellampitiya Police. Earlier in February in Ratnapura three Bangladeshi nationals were also arrested for possessing 6.750 Kg of this plant while they were attempting to smuggle it to Saudi Arabia.

Malaysia, Indonesia and India produce a perfume called Agil, using the plant while countries in Europe use the resin of the plant to produce expensive perfumes. Its high value attract US Dollars 2-5 for a gram while a kilo of the resin is worth more than US 25,000. The plant is found in upcountry forests and in the Sri Pada area.