SINDHUPALCHOK, Dec 16: Police on Sunday seized 3 kgs of gold being smuggled across Nepal´s border with China at Tatopani custom point. This is the second seizure of illegal gold being smuggled into the country along the Arniko Highway in less than two week.
Police said they recovered the gold in an unclaimed bag at Tatopani Custom Office during search. The police said they believed the smugglers might have fled leaving the bag behind when they saw police check at the custom gate.
The recovered gold was rapped in a cloth belt, according to Chief of Boarder Security Office, Superintendent of Armed police Force, Kamal Giri.
“Three gold bars, each weighing one kg, were found in the cloth belt which could be tie around the waist,” said Giri. He also informed that police had been tipped-off about the gold and the checks had been intensified. "We came to the conclusion that smugglers might have run away to aviod being caught after they saw the heightened check,” Giri furher said.
The gold smugglers had already entered the import gate of the custom but could not pass the gate, which is 800 meter from from the Sino Nepal Bridge. “If the smugglers had successfully crossed this gate, the gold is likely to be on its way to any destination in Nepal,” said SP Giri.
According to an eyewitness, a woman, who has been carrying goods purchased from Khasa, was helping smugglers to take the gold cross the check-post. As per the bullion market price on Sunday, the recovered gold is worth over Rs 15 million rupees.
District Police Chief, Deputy Superintend of Police, Pratap Gurung said investigation was underway to ascertain the proprietor of the contraband gold.
Two weeks ago police had recovered 9 kg of gold in Dhulikhel from a mini-truck bound for Katmandu from Khasa.
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