Police recommends action against 22 individuals, including nine immigration officers
KATHMANDU, Jan 29: The police have recommended legal action against 22 individuals, including nine immigration officers, for their involvement in human trafficking under the guise of 'visit visas'.
The District Police Range, Kathmandu, which conducted an investigation into the gang who forged documents and sent individuals abroad on visit visas, submitted a report to the Office of the Attorney General on Sunday and recommended action against 22 people who were found guilty.
Out of the 22 individuals implicated, 10 are currently in police custody, and arrest warrants have been issued for the remaining 12. Among those apprehended include Narbir Khadka, an immigration officer stationed at Tribhuvan International Airport, along with nine travel agency operators.
Former immigration officials Tara Bahadur Kunwar, Kushal Baral, Shailendra Dhakal, Bimal Paudel, Bishnu Aryal, Bikas Dangol, Pitambar Rimal, and Sujan Fago are on the fugitive list. The police disclosed that the remaining four are middlemen.
Human trafficking through Pashupatinagar on the rise
Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) Angur GC from the District Police Range, Kathmandu, stated that the immigration officials on the absconding list had been transferred from the TIA immigration office, so it is challenging to arrest them immediately.
"They have relocated after being transferred from the immigration. We have requested the Ministry of Federal Affairs and General Administration to locate them. Once we receive the information, the police will apprehend them and present them before the court," said DSP GC.
The police have recommended charging the arrested individuals with the offense of tampering with government documents. Additionally, the police suggested prosecuting them under the Organized Crime Prevention Act, 2070 BS. The Office of the Attorney General has initiated a criminal case against 39 members of the gang responsible for creating fake documents for visit visas and sending individuals abroad.
This is how it was revealed
On September 18 to October 17, 2023 the police assigned for airport security found suspicious documents while checking an individual intending to go abroad on a visit visa. The TIA Security Office assigned the Kathmandu Valley Crime Investigation Office to investigate the suspicious documents of more than 1,500 people.
"The investigation confirmed that the plus-two education certificates, bank statements, police reports, relationship proof papers, and work permits were all fake. The visit visas were issued based on these fraudulent documents," said an officer from the Crime Investigation Branch.
According to the 17-point guidelines set by the Department of Immigration for the visit visa, having a record of traveling abroad at least once outside the Gulf countries and twice in the case of the Gulf countries, having spent at least two years in a foreign country, having passed a formal education of at least grade 12 or equivalent, having knowledge of the language spoken in the destination country, having at least Rs 500,000 transactions from a bank account, having a balance of up to Rs 250,000, and proof of relationship if visiting relatives abroad are required to travel abroad on visit visas. The investigation officer said that it was found that young people who are not aware of these guidelines are being sent abroad with fake documents.
The police initially arrested Deepak KC and Bal Bahadur Rawat while searching for people who made fake certificates for visit visas. The police said that they had the equipment to make fake documents. They stated that they were making documents according to orders from travel agencies and various consultancies.
“Then we arrested a travel agency owner Saroj Yadav,” said DSP GC. Saroj Yadav had given a statement that all the work was done in collusion with the immigration office. During the investigation, the managers of various travel agencies and consultancies were arrested. During interrogation, they revealed that they had to pay Rs 10,000 to the police, Rs 10,000 to the airline company and Rs 55,000 to the immigration official to send a person abroad illegally through the airport.
As the police intensified their investigation, it was found that immigration officer Narbir Khadka was siphoning money from middlemen. “But he did not accept the money directly," said the investigating officer. "We received information that the money should be left at a counter of a hotel in Sinamangal and he would later take it from there," the officer added.
The police then put the hotel under surveillance. “During the surveillance, one-person paid Rs 200,000 at the hotel counter. After some time, Khadka went and received the money. We arrested Khadka red-handed. He tried to tear the documents and the money. We managed to preserve the evidence," said the official.
Police officials say that more secrets are being revealed after the arrest of immigration officer Khadka. According to the police, Khadka has given a statement that such a setup has been going on since before he joined the airport immigration and that all the employees get a share from the spoils.
The Valley Crime Investigation Office has investigated this issue several times and submitted the report to the Office of Attorney General at different phases. This recent report includes the recommendation to prosecute immigration staff involved in the illicit activities.
