The body of the most wanted rhino poacher, Asmat Ali alias Nalco, has been recovered near Biswanath ghat in Assam on Friday.

On February 16, Nalco was arrested from Kerala’s Malappuram district. He was allegedly involved in large-scale poaching of one-horned rhino in Kaziranga National Park (KNP).

In an attempt to escape custody, he jumped into the River Brahmaputra after which he was declared absconder by the state government and a reward of Rs 5 lakh was announced for his capture.

The poacher was accused of poaching the one-horned rhinoceros listed as vulnerable in International Union for Conservation of Nature’s red list of threatened species.

A senior police officer said that the accused had gone to Kerala as he was involved in several poaching cases in the state and the police was actively looking for him.

Earlier on February 2, additional DGP (law and order), Assam GP Singh announced a reward of Rs. 5 lakhs for any person providing information on the poached rhino horn.