Sundaragada: Four cattle were rescued after suspected smugglers abandoned them inside a Scorpio SUV near Sukhabandh under Hemgir police limits in Odisha's Sundaragada district on Sunday morning.

According to reports, the accused were allegedly transporting the cattle in the SUV when the vehicle developed a snag near Sukhabandh. Unable to continue the journey, they abandoned the vehicle along with the animals and fled the spot.

The smugglers had fitted the SUV with a fake registration number plate. They had also removed the rear seats of the vehicle to create space for transporting the four cattle.

Locals noticed the abandoned vehicle and rescued the cattle before informing the police.

On receiving the information, Hemgir police reached the spot, seized the Scorpio SUV, and launched an investigation into the incident to identify and trace those involved in the alleged cattle smuggling.