Kathmandu District Court on Wednesday issued an arrest warrant against suspended Deputy Superintendent of Police Kumud Dhungel for his alleged involvement in criminal activities.
On May 3, Nepal Police had suspended Dhungel, who was then in charge of Chandranigahapur Area Police Office in Rautahat, after he was linked with Bikram Shrestha, a criminal arrested in a robbery case.
“The investigation into the case is underway, so we cannot disclose any information now,” said Inspector Koshish Joshi, one of the investigators.
“Dhungel has not been arrested yet,” Joshi confirmed.
On April 10, a gang of about six men had robbed a house in Ranibari, Kathmandu, after subduing the house owner Lalendra Sherchan, his wife Bhanu Devi, and their maid Mithu Thakali. The robber had made off with jewellery and Rs 560,000 cash.
The Metropolitan Police Crime Division launched a manhunt in the wake of the incident and arrested Shrestha, Nabaraj Tamang, and Shanta Bahadur Tamang on April 19.
Police investigation later revealed that Shrestha, one of the robbery suspects, had links with DPS Dhungel.
Call details, as well as Shrestha’s confession, helped investigators establish that Dhungel and Shrestha were in regular contact with each other before the robbery.
Dhungel, who was considered by many of his colleagues as a man of integrity and for being professional, was immediately suspended after the revelation.
During his career in the police force, Dhungel had also earned his reputation as an encounter specialist. He was behind the encounter of Manoj Pun and Som Bahadur Ale, the accused behind the murder of Sharad Kumar Gauchan, chairman of the Federation of Contractors’ Association of Nepal on October 9, 2017.
Shuvam Dhungana was a crime and social affairs reporter for The Kathmandu Post. Before joining the Post, Dhungana worked for The Himalayan Times and Republica.
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