Illegal foreign currency (US dollars and Euros) worth Rs 25 crore has been recovered from a truck traveling to China to buy clothes. The driver, who was also the owner of the vehicle, was arrested in Kusang La, known as 'Fuchche', along with the foreign currency. Although the amount has not been disclosed in detail, the analysis of the police is that the money is being taken to the Chinese border to bring gold.

Kusang, a resident of Sindhupalchok Bhotekoshi Rural Municipality-1, has been living in a camp in Gokarneshwar Municipality-2 of Kathmandu along with his family. The truck No. 7 B 1652 driven by him was seized by the police from Tokha Municipality-2 Jhor at 11 o'clock on Monday night. According to the police, the truck was seized based on information that illegal euros and dollars were being taken to China through the Rasuwagadhi crossing. 

'Based on the information, we brought the truck to the office and searched it,' says SSP Ramesh Basnet, head of the Kathmandu Valley Crime Investigation Office, 'We recovered American and Euro currency hidden inside the false bottom on the left side of the driver's cabin.'

The truck was kept in the garage for almost three weeks and was arrested by the police on the same day it was taken out. According to Acharya, the train to Rasuwa usually runs twice a week. "The car driven by Lama may have been planned and kept in the garage and a place to hide the money," says Acharya. The police have also claimed that this is the largest amount they have found at one time. 

According to the police, an arrangement was made for Lama to drive an empty truck marked 'Sony Transport' to Rasuwagadhi and then another driver would take it across the border.

Lama told the police that he was going to buy fancy clothes. "But instead of buying clothes, it seems that they are trying to bring the illegal money across the border to China and buy gold from there," says Kazikumar Acharya, information officer of the Kathmandu Valley Crime Investigation Office.

The arrested 43-year-old Lama is a person who has been jailed for 5 years for revenue evasion and gold smuggling. He was caught in Galchi while coming to Kathmandu with a car on 13th of January 2073 for smuggling 7 kg of gold.

. At that time, even though he was accused of working as a porter, the police could not reach the main man of gold smuggling. The police suspect that Lama has been working as a porter and driver in gold smuggling since his release from prison. The police have sent it to the Revenue Investigation Department for further investigation and action. 

'Foreign money is also traded in Nepal, there are money exchanges, this money may have been collected and taken from Nepal,' he says. The police have also recovered two mobile phones from Lama. Chandi Prasad Ghimire, Director General of the Revenue Investigation Department, says that this incident points to the fact that there is a large amount of smuggling and theft.

62 million illegal foreign currency seized in the month 

Every month in Nepal, an average of 62 lakh rupees worth of illegal foreign currency is seized. The police have recovered more than 50 million illegal foreign currency from different places till February of this financial year. 

97 thousand 157 US dollars, 87 thousand 50 euros, 7 thousand 200 Swiss francs, 46 thousand 200 Canadian dollars, 249 Singapore dollars have been seized until February of the financial year. Similarly, 4435 thousand Japanese yen, 57 thousand Saudi riyals, 40 thousand 520 Thai baht, 100 Malaysian ringgit and 71 lakh 7 thousand 340 baht have been seized by the police. All seized currency is Nepali rupees 5 crore 37 lakh 52 thousand 6 hundred and 15. 25 Nepalese and 22 foreign nationals have been arrested in this illegal currency transaction.

In the last 6 years from 2075/76 to 2080/81, 34 crore 27 lakh 51 thousand 581 rupees have been recovered from Nepalis and foreigners whose sources have not been disclosed. According to the police, 1 crore 59 lakh 10 thousand 959 rupees were recovered in 2075/76, 89 lakh 500 rupees in 2076/7, 7 crore 29 lakh 27 thousand 850 rupees in 2077/78, 11 crore 54 lakh 44 thousand 624 rupees in 2078/79, 5 crore 53 lakh 87 thousand 608 rupees in 2079/80 and 7 crore 41 lakh 80 thousand 40 rupees in 2080/81. According to Central Police Spokesperson Deputy Inspector General Dinesh Kumar Acharya, the amount controlled in this way reaches the Customs Office, Internal Revenue Office. After completion of the investigation on the undisclosed amount, it will be deposited in the government revenue according to the law. But if the source of the undisclosed amount came from theft, fraud or something else, the case will be investigated and prosecuted,' says Acharya.