60 kg gold smuggling case: 20 arrested in second round of investigation and 15 still absconding

KATHMANDU, JUNE 26: The Central Investigation Bureau (CIB) has arrested 20 alleged culprits in the second round of investigation into the 60 kg gold smuggling case. A huge quantity of gold was smuggled into Nepal via Cathay Pacific Airways from Hong Kong, hidden inside brake shoes in July 2023.

CIB's Spokesperson and Superintendent of Police (SP) Hobindra Bogati told RSS that they were in the last phase of the second round of investigation into the smuggling case. SP Bogati shared that 15 accused were still absconding. "More details about this issue will be made public through a press meeting within a few days," he added.

Among those arrested in the second round were Indian nationals Prashant Ganesh Bajawalkar, Siddanath Ashok Gayakwad, Baijanath Mahadutta Goyal, and Dhirajdinesh Bait. Similarly, police arrested Nepalis, namely Surendraman Shrestha of Birgunj-11, Raju Khattri of Suryabinayak-5 in Bhaktapur, Sushil Jakibanja of Madhyapur-15, and Kancha Lama of Temal-4 in Kavrepalanchowk.

Police also held Bhim Prasad Timilsina of Namobuddha-10, Rupak Bhandari of Bhumlu-1, Prajwal Acharya of Kathmandu-7, Suraj Shumsher JBR of Subhidanagar in Kathmandu, Kashyap Manandhar of Bafal, Lal Bahadur Kunwar of Satyawati-1 in Gulmi, Arun Kumar Yadav of Jitpur-19 in Bara, and Sonam Gurung aka Serap. A Tibetan person named Ganga Tashi has been nabbed for his alleged involvement in the smuggling of gold, said Bogati.

Police are searching for the absconding accused while forwarding the investigation into those involved in smuggling the gold, smelting the gold, transporting the smuggled yellow metal, buying and selling it, and managing the money in a planned manner. A team from the Revenue Investigation Department had confiscated the gold from Tribhuvan International Airport in Kathmandu.

It may be noted that the CIB, after its first round of investigation, had submitted an investigation report to the District Public Prosecutor's Office on September 18 last year, demanding over Rs 3.3 billion in fines from 29 accused individuals.

RSS