Police have seized 77 tortoises of rare species from Bihar's Purnea district and arrested four smugglers in connection with the seizure.
During a search operation near Barsoni toll plaza under Dagarua police station on Sunday, sacks containing the tortoises were recovered from a jeep, Superintendent of Police (SP) Vishal Sharma said on Monday.
Among the four held, one is a woman, Sharma said, adding, they were going to UP from West Bengal to sell the tortoises.
Forest department officials said the seized tortoises belong to the rare terrapin species, and are in demand for medicinal purposes.