A team of the Forest Department said that on the basis of a tip-off, they had raided a village near Hunterganj town in Chatra district where a deer was killed and cooked on Tuesday night by eight youths.

The foresters carried out the raid at all eight houses on Wednesday at Dalgoma village under Chakla panchayat in Huntergunj block, around 30 kilometers away from the district headquarter.

However, seven of the accused persons managed to escape, while one, named Bhola Baiga was arrested. The police also recovered the skin of the deer from his house.

Forest range officer Surya Bhushan Kumar, who led the team, said that they got information that a few youths -- Bhola Baiga, Mahendra Mahato a.k.a Gujjar, Kajru Baiga, Manoj Baiga, Ashok Baiga, Shankar Baiga, Sukan Baiga and Karu Baiga -- killed a deer at a forest near their village, and cooked to eat it on Tuesday night.

Apart from the skin recovered from Bhola Baiga’s house, the police also found the deer horns from Mahendra Mahato’s residence.

Kumar said that efforts are on to nab the accused youths, including Mahendra, who have been absconding since the raid.

The officer further added that killing of deer is a crime under Wildlife Protection Act, and the department is leaving no stones unturned to create awareness among the villagers.

However, this is not the first time such an incident took place. Despite raids followed by arrests, the forest has failed to put a check on deer poaching in Chatra which still has dense forest covers.

A few foresters were suspended in March for cooking and eating the deer meat which was seized from poachers.