Horse Meat Sold as Donkey Meat in Ongole, 7 Held
Horse meat racket busted in Ongole; 7 arrested for cheating customers
Nellore: A routine Sunday rush for meat turned into a shocking case of food fraud in Ongole, where police busted a racket allegedly selling horse meat under the guise of donkey meat and arrested seven persons.
With demand for meat peaking on Sundays, the accused reportedly exploited heavy footfall at local markets. Investigations revealed that the gang attempted to cash in on the occasional sale of donkey meat by deceptively passing off horse meat to unsuspecting customers.
The racket came to light following a tip-off about suspicious late-night activity on Mangamuru Road. Acting swiftly, Ongole taluk police, led by Circle Inspector T. Vijaya Krishna, conducted a raid and found horses being slaughtered and meat being prepared for sale.
Police said the gang had procured five horses from Cherukupalli. Of these, three had already been slaughtered, while two were rescued during the raid. Authorities also seized four autorickshaws and a car used in the operation.
Circle Inspector Vijaya Krishna said the primary motive was to deceive customers and make quick profits by selling horse meat falsely labelled as donkey meat.
The incident has triggered concern in the district, raising questions about food safety and illegal meat trade practices. Further investigation is underway.
