People told to be aware of fraudsters

KATHMANDU, SEPTEMBER 27

Police have urged people, especially those going abroad or returning from foreign countries, to be aware of fraudsters offering to exchange dollar bills at a rate cheaper than the market price.

According to statistics with the Metropolitan Police Office, at least such 16 cases of fraud have been reported in Kathmandu valley in the last six months. Metropolitan Police Range, Bhaktpur, arrested a racket of five persons, including a woman, were arrested from Balkot of Suryabinayak Municipality-2, on Friday for their involvement in a series of fraud cases of currency exchange.

Those taken into custody were Khel Bahadur Tamang, 36, Rel Bahadur Tamang, 33, Shyam Bahadur Tamang, 56, Ramkrishna Tamang, 25, and Kanchhi Tamang, 32, of Sindhupalchowk.

They had robbed Dipesh Gurung of Lalitpur of Rs 500,000 in Gongabu last week. He had recently returned home from Dubai.

Mansur Gharti of Rolpa was robbed of Rs 980,000 last week in Bode, Bhaktapur.

Sudarshan Thapa of Morang, a returnee from Portugal had lost Rs 800,000 to the fraud racket.

“We have accorded top priority to this issue, as fraudsters continue to dupe many people, especially foreign returnees,” an investigating official said. According to police, the racketeers defrauded unsuspecting persons. “The racketeers find persons willing to exchange Nepali rupees for US dollars and convince them to exchange money at ‘a cheap rate’ by showing dollar bills,” said an investigating officer.

After convincing the targets, the swindlers invite them to a solitary place for ‘mutual exchange’ and make off with Nepali rupees by providing them with bundles of paper that have genuine dollar bills on the top and bottom.

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A version of this article appears in e-paper on September 28, 2020, of The Himalayan Times.

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