Kathmandu, October 13
Former Speaker of the House of Representatives, Krishna Bahadur Mahara, has been arrested. The Central Investigation Bureau (CIB) of Nepal Police detained him on Sunday, confirmed AIG Manoj KC.
The case dates back to December 25, 2022, when a Chinese national named Li Hansong arrived in Kathmandu on Fly Dubai flight number FZ 0578, carrying two suitcases. Inside the suitcases were 73 packets containing 730 vapes, which were later found to be concealing gold. The smuggled gold was valued at Rs 85.5 million.
Investigations had earlier revealed that the gold was sold through collusion involving customs officer Revenant Khadka and others. Mahara was accused of exerting pressure on customs officials to release the confiscated gold. His son, Rahul Mahara, had already been arrested and sent to prison in connection with the same case.
After the two suitcases appeared suspicious, airport customs officials conducted a search and found the vapes, which they immediately seized. Li Hansong left Kathmandu the following day after reclaiming his passport, while the vapes remained stored at customs for an extended period.
Upon receiving information that the vapes contained smuggled gold, some airport staff allegedly swapped them secretly. Suspecting tampering, the customs office wrote to the CIB on May 9, 2023, requesting a formal investigation.
After a two-month inquiry, the CIB concluded that nine kilograms of gold had been smuggled and filed charges against six individuals, including customs officer Revenant Khadka.
In a supplementary charge sheet, Chinese-origin Belgian national Dawa Tshering, his driver Lokendra Paudel, Rahul Mahara, and Nima Gurung were named as accomplices.
With Mahara’s arrest, this marks the third round of prosecution in the case.
According to CIB sources, Mahara had been questioned a few days ago as part of the ongoing investigation. Call records showed that both Mahara and his son Rahul had been in continuous contact with Chinese nationals Li Hansong and Daoniz Wang, who were directly involved in the gold smuggling through Tribhuvan International Airport.
Although Mahara had previously come under investigation, the case had not progressed earlier due to his political influence and power.
