The accused in the infamous country bomb explosion, that caused the death of a baby elephant near Thadagam, was nabbed here on Thursday.

The accused Murugan (41), a resident of Mariamman Koil Street at Kuppanaiyekenpalayam in the Somayampalayam Village, has been remanded to custody.

Police and Forest officials were on the lookout for the miscreants who had planted the avittikkai (a type of country bomb) to capture Wild Boars close to the Ponnoothamman Koil near Thadagam Road.

On July 15, a three-year-old elephant calf bit the bomb and it exploded. The calf sustained deep injuries. Efforts to separate it from the herd for treatment proved futile. The elephant reportedly roamed with the herd with deep injuries and died on July 30 at a private brick kiln near Thadagam. Forest officials and volunteers had a tough time in retrieving its body as its mother chased everyone who came near the carcass.

Search is on to nab two more accused – Rangaraj (40) and Rajendran (39), of Chinnathadagam, who are at large.
It may be noted that this is the first poaching case in Coimbatore in a long time.