On Tuesday evening, a trekking company based in Lalitpur -18, was broken into, and valuables were stolen. Burglars broke into Summit Nepal Trekking, owned by Shivaraj Thapa, and took away cash worth Rs 200,000 in addition to 500 euros, said police.

Similarly on Tuesday, a team from Metropolitan Crime Division and Metropolitan Police beat, Gaushala, arrested two people in Chabahil over alleged burglaries in multiple places, including a boys’ hostel and a private residence, both in the same neighbourhood.

The arrestees are: Himal Rasaily, 21, of Sunsari currently living in Dhumbarahi and Ali Alam, 28, of Bara currently living in Ombahal, Kathmandu.

“We confiscated a laptop, two ipads, six mobile phones, two projectors, a camera and Rs 53,000 along with $ 300 and RMB 200,” said Deputy Superintendent Pradeep Kumar Singh, chief of Gaushala police.

Investigation into the case revealed that the duo used fake press IDs to move around during the lockdown, said Singh. “The duo was to have broken into empty shops and homes,” Singh told the post.

Data provided by the Metropolitan Police Office, Ranipokhari, shows that 44 cases of burglary have been reported in the Valley in the last two months. A month before the Covid-19 lockdown, police recorded 63 cases related to burglary.

“Although the number of burglary cases has declined in recent times, burglars are targeting empty houses as many people have gone home to their home villages,” said Senior Superintendent Sushil Kumar Yadav, spokesperson for the Metropolitan Police Office, Ranipokhari.

“Patrol teams have been mobilised round the clock to provide security to the public.”

Nepal has been in lockdown since March 24 to contain the spread of covid-19. Thousands of people have left the Valley to return to their home villages due to the crisis. The lockdown is to remain in place until at least June 2.

Senior Superintendent Shyam Lal Gyawali, chief of Kathmandu Metropolitan Police Range, said police have arrested many burglars during the lockdown, especially at night.

“However, all the burglars we arrested were not professional ones; some were trying to steal to fulfill their needs.”

Data from Nepal Police shows that burglary cases have been on the rise in Kathmandu in the last five years. Altogether 1,309 complaints were filed in the fiscal year 2014/15. The number of cases rose to 1,578 in the following fiscal year. In 2018/19, cases related to theft and burglary touched 2,646.