Kochi (Kerala) | Two forest officials were caught red-handed by the VACB while allegedly accepting a bribe of Rs 1 lakh to exclude certain persons from a case registered by the Forest Department in Kochi, officials said on Friday.

Deputy Range Officer Sreejith C P, a native of Pathirappally in Alappuzha, and Section Forest Officer Jimmy Scaria, a native of Piravom in Ernakulam, were arrested by the Vigilance and Anti-Corruption Bureau (VACB) team on Thursday night.

Both were attached to the Mekkapala Forest Station, officials said.

According to the Vigilance officials, the case is related to an incident in which two employees of a restaurant at Kakkanad were arrested on April 16, 2026, for allegedly killing a monitor lizard.

They were remanded to judicial custody for seven days and later released on bail, with the court directing them to report at the forest station every Wednesday.

When the accused appeared at the station on May 6, forest officials allegedly threatened to implicate more employees in the case unless money was paid to "settle" the matter, VACB officials said.

The officials also allegedly called the employees back to the station and warned that three more staff members would be arrested if the demand was not met.

The next day, Sreejith and Scaria, along with other officials, reportedly visited the restaurant, examined CCTV footage and threatened that all employees could be arrested, officials said.

They later directed the complainant and others to appear again at the forest station.

VACB officials said that after recording their statements, the officials allegedly took the complainant and others outside the station and demanded money to exclude them from the case.

They allegedly said the amount would be decided after consulting higher officials and asked him to call them later.

On May 13, when the complainant contacted Sreejith over the phone, he allegedly demanded a bribe of Rs 1 lakh, VACB officials said.

Unwilling to pay the bribe, the complainant approached the VACB unit in Ernakulam, which laid a trap.

Officials said they caught Scaria red-handed while accepting the bribe from the complainant near MGM School at Kuruppampady at around 9.45 pm on Thursday.

Subsequently, Sreejith was also apprehended near a forest timber depot at Mudikkal, officials said. Both the accused will be produced before the Vigilance Court in Muvattupuzha, officials added