2 lemurs stolen from safari park trafficked to India, CID unable to trace location

The two ring-tailed lemurs stolen from Gazipur Safari Park were trafficked to India, according to the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) of Bangladesh Police.

The information emerged after law enforcement agencies arrested eight people allegedly involved in the trafficking.

However, the CID has not been able to confirm whether the two endangered animals are currently at Vantara, a private wildlife rescue, conservation and rehabilitation centre in Gujarat, India.

CID Special Superintendent of Police (Media) Chufi Ullah told The Business Standard that the two lemurs were trafficked to India through a wildlife trafficking network after being stolen from the safari park.

"We learned this during the interrogation of those involved in the trafficking. However, we have not yet been able to determine where the animals were taken afterwards," he said.

Meanwhile, citing the CID, several national and international media outlets recently reported that the two lemurs had changed hands several times before eventually reaching Vantara, and that they were sold for around Rs48 lakh.

Vantara is owned by the Ambani family, one of India's leading business families.

However, Chufi Ullah denied that the CID had confirmed the animals were at Vantara.

He said there was no way to establish that the two lemurs stolen from Gazipur Safari Park were the same animals currently at Vantara without scientific verification or the arrest and interrogation of the entire trafficking network.

The lemurs originally entered Bangladesh through trafficking

Ring-tailed lemurs are native to Madagascar, not Bangladesh.

In 2018, two lemurs were seized at Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport along with macaws, peafowl and other birds while being trafficked, and were later sent to Safari Park in Sreepur, Gazipur.

The pair subsequently gave birth to two male offspring, one of which died in early 2022.
On 23 March 2025, the two adult lemurs and their surviving offspring were stolen from the park.

Anisur Rahman, acting officer of the safari park, subsequently filed a case with Sreepur Police Station in Gazipur. The case is currently being investigated by the CID.

How the 3 lemurs were stolen

According to CID sources, Niphel Mahmud, 33, from Gafargaon, Mymensingh, worked at the safari park through an outsourcing arrangement. 

Jewel Mia, 42, from the same area, allegedly approached him to arrange the sale of the lemurs.

After Niphel agreed, Jewel and another unidentified person entered the park on the night of 23 March 2025, stole the three lemurs and took them to Jewel's home in Gafargaon.

Two lemurs trafficked to India, one later died

A CID source told TBS that bird trader Delwar Hossain Tawshif, 22, bought the three lemurs from Jewel for Tk7 lakh and later sold them for Tk9 lakh to two men, Babul and Shiplu, reportedly from West Bengal and Mumbai.

The two allegedly smuggled two lemurs into India, while the third was left in Bangladesh.

It was rescued from an abandoned cage beneath a steel bridge at Shyambazar Jame Masjid Ghat in Sadarghat on 18 April 2025 and returned to Gazipur Safari Park, but it died several months later.

Law enforcement agencies have arrested eight people at different stages in connection with the case.

They are Jahir Mia, 25; Niphel Mahmud, 33; Md Delwar Hossain Tawshif, 22; Jewel Mia, 42; Md Ismail Hossain Hridoy, 26; Sabbir Hossain Tapan, 26; Majnu Mia, 55; and Tafazzal Hossain, 37.

Seven of the eight accused have also given confessional statements before a court.

CID yet to trace traffickers or lemurs

The CID has identified two men, Babul and Shiplu, as allegedly involved in trafficking the lemurs to India but has yet to establish their identities.

"We learned their names during interrogation, but found no passports, Aadhaar cards or photographs to identify them. We also cannot confirm whether they are Indian nationals," Chufi Ullah told TBS.

He added that investigators had learned Babul travelled from India to Bangladesh around the time of the theft.

Although the CID has confirmed that two lemurs were trafficked to India, it has not been able to trace them further or verify whether the animals at Vantara are the same ones stolen from Gazipur Safari Park.

Chufi Ullah said the stolen lemurs had not undergone DNA profiling, making a comparison with the Vantara animals impossible.

However, a preserved sample from the rescued lemur that later died has been sent to a Forest Department laboratory for DNA testing. The report is still pending.

The CID has also twice written to the Customs Department seeking information on the lemurs' original importers, but has yet to receive the information.

What Vantara says

After reports claimed the stolen lemurs had reached Vantara, TBS emailed the wildlife rescue and rehabilitation centre yesterday (10 September) seeking clarification. 

Vantara later issued a statement on its Facebook page.

Vantara said it had no involvement in the theft and had received no notice or request from any investigating agency.

It also said none of the individuals named in connection with the theft had any association with the centre.

The centre said all animals at Vantara are housed in accordance with Indian law and under the supervision of the relevant authorities.

It added that it had submitted records of its two ring-tailed lemurs to the appropriate authorities and requested an independent verification.

Vantara also welcomed scientific verification, including DNA testing, by competent authorities in Bangladesh and India and said it would cooperate with any lawful request.

Vantara offers records, welcomes DNA testing

Vantara said it would submit the complete records of the ring-tailed lemurs in its care to the relevant authorities and has asked its independent Governing Council to examine them.

The private wildlife reserve also said all animals under its care have documented provenance and are maintained in accordance with Indian laws and regulatory oversight.

It expressed confidence that the lemurs were acquired legally and said it would fully cooperate with any lawful request, including DNA testing by competent authorities in India and Bangladesh.

Our New Delhi Correspondent Pallab Bhattacharya contributed to this report.