Three suspected poachers were held with tiger skin near Bahrani about 50 km from here.
Gaba, Yaseen and Mohammad Shafiwere arrested from a hotel on way to Haldwani near Bahrani village yesterday and a tiger skin was recovered from their possession,Chief Conservator of Forests (Kumaun)Rajendra Singh Bisht said.
The tiger skin appears to be about four months old of an approximately nine-year-old big cat, he said.
"It does not look like a stand-alone poaching incident. A team of senior forest officials is looking into possible links of the arrested poachers with other gangs involved in poaching of tigers," Bisht said.
Gaba is from Pipalpadao locality of Nainital while Yaseen and Mohmad Shafi hail from Bahrani village, he said.
