KATHMANDU, April 9: The Commission for the Investigation of Abuse of Authority (CIAA) has filed a corruption case at the Special Court against 28 individuals and one company, including former Speaker Krishna Bahadur Mahara, in connection with the gold smuggling case involving electronic cigarettes (vapes) at Tribhuvan International Airport (TIA).
The anti-graft body has claimed Rs 77.86 million in damages, alleging that around 8.5 kg of gold hidden inside 730 vape devices was embezzled.
According to the investigation, the smuggling attempt took place on December 25, 2022, when Chinese national Li Hang Song arrived in Kathmandu on a flydubai flight carrying two suitcases containing 73 cartons of vape devices. During X-ray screening, suspicious yellow and black metallic objects were detected, and the luggage was sent to the red channel for further inspection.
However, CIAA alleges that customs officials assigned to the red channel failed to seize the gold due to collusion with the smugglers. The goods were instead stored without proper inspection, allegedly with the intention of exchanging them later.
Gold smuggling scandal fugitive Adhikari now in CIAA’s crosshai...
Investigators say that then chief customs officer Mukti Prasad Shrestha kept the seized items in his office and held unusual meetings with the smugglers, even returning the Chinese national’s passport illegally. Later, the vape devices containing the gold were transferred to the customs warehouse.
At the warehouse, the genuine gold-filled vapes were allegedly removed in a location not covered by CCTV cameras and replaced with fake ones. A test conducted by security guard Nirmal Kumar BK and non-gazetted officer Madhusudan Pokharel at a jewelry shop in Koteshwor confirmed the metal to be 99.6 percent pure gold.
The stolen gold was later sold to Indian national Sahebrao Pandurang Marag, owner of Pashupati Gold and Silver Shop in Otubahal, Kathmandu. According to the CIAA, the illegal proceeds were deposited in the bank accounts of Dipika Thapa, Prerana Thapa, Lalita Thapa, and Dexter Travels and Tours Pvt Ltd.
The investigation also found that the illicit money was used to purchase land in the names of Ram Keshav Thapa Kshetri and Amrit Karki in an attempt to launder the funds.
Among those charged are 10 former customs officials, including then airport customs chief Arun Pokharel, chief customs officers Mukti Prasad Shrestha and Ambika Prasad Khanal, customs officers Ramesh Kumar Khatiwada and Subendra Shrestha, and officials Suvarna Prabha KC, Bhuwan Raj Ghimire, Umesh Prasad Koirala, Rewant Khadka, and Madhusudan Pokharel.
The CIAA has also accused Mahara and his son Resham (Rahul) Mahara of influencing customs officials to facilitate the release of the smuggled gold. The anti-graft body has sought additional punishment for Pokharel as the head of a public institution and argued that Mahara and other accomplices should face punishment equivalent to the main offenders.
