Recording of CPN (Maoist Center) Vice-chairman Krishna Bahadur Mahara’s statement in the 9 kg gold smuggling case has been completed.
Joint Attorney Sandesh Shrestha, chief of the District Government Attorney Office (DGAO), Kathmandu, said that Mahara’s statement was recorded at the DGAO on Wednesday and Thursday.
According to Shrestha, Mahara’s statement was recorded for 3-4 hours on Wednesday and for around three hours on Thursday.
The Inquiry Commission on Gold Smuggling, in its report submitted to Deputy Prime Minister and Home Minister Rabi Lamichhane last Thursday, concluded that Mahara should also be tried for gold smuggling.
Police subsequently arrested Mahara from Kapilvastu on Monday morning over his alleged involvement in the smuggling of nine kilograms of gold disguised as e-cigarettes in December 2022. He was flown to Kathmandu later in the day.
On Monday evening, the Kathmandu District Court granted the police permission to keep Mahara in custody for four days but also ordered the administration to make arrangements for Mahara's treatment saying he is ill.
The Central Investigation Bureau (CIB) of Nepal Police is investigating Mahara for organized crime.
The CIB had earlier released Mahara after making him sign necessary documents in the 9 kg gold smuggling case.
In its investigation report on the 9 kg gold smuggling case submitted to the District Government Attorney’s Office, Kathmandu, the CIB had included a link chart which also showed that Mahara was in contact with Daojin Wang, the alleged mastermind behind the gold smuggling.
Additional Inspector General (AIG) Shyam Gyawali is the current chief of CIB. He replaced AIG Kiran Bajracharya as CIB chief after the inquiry commission recommended departmental action against Bajracharya citing lapses in the investigation.
Mahara and his son Rahul came under investigation after police found that they were in contact with those involved in bringing nine kilograms of gold disguised as e-cigarettes in December 2022.
In its investigation report on the 9 kg gold smuggling case submitted to the District Government Attorney’s Office, Kathmandu, the CIB of Nepal Police had included a link chart which also showed that Mahara was in contact with Daojin Wang, the alleged mastermind behind the gold smuggling.
The customs office at the Tribhuvan International Airport had confiscated 730 e-cigarettes from a Chinese national named Li Hansong who arrived on a Fly Dubai flight on December 25, 2022.
When Li claimed that the e-cigarettes were brought for business purpose, Chief Customs Officer Mukti Prasad Shrestha had ordered confiscation of the e-cigarettes giving one to the Chinese national for the latter’s use pointing that goods brought for commercial purpose cannot be cleared from the passengers’ section.
The Chinese national, who was allowed to leave after confiscation of the e-cigarettes, left Nepal after staying here for a few days.
The Mahara father-son duo then contacted the chief customs officer and put pressure on him to release the e-cigarettes.
The authorities found out that the e-cigarettes were actually gold only after investigations when a staffer at the customs office realized that the e-cigarettes had been changed from the store.
A non-gazetted first-class official of TIA Customs Office Rewant Khadka and customs agent Dinesh Basnet had collaborated to change the e-cigarettes, extracted around nine kilograms of gold from the e-cigarettes and sold it for Rs 60 million by then.
The CIB then investigated and filed a case against five people after the incident came to light.
Rahul is also in custody over his alleged involvement in the smuggling.
