Nepal Floods: 29 Arrested for Looting Money From Bank Safe Washed Away by Floodwaters

Kathmandu: Nepal is reeling from reports of thieves turning the disaster zone into a scene of looting even as the country remains devastated by floods. Police have arrested 29 people for allegedly breaking open a huge bank safe that was swept away by floodwaters and stealing millions of rupees.

The locker, which was swept away from the Bhotekoshi area of Suwa, was later found along the Trishuli River near Belkhukhola in Galchi Rural Municipality of Dhading district.

According to police, some local residents broke open the safe after it was found and took the money inside. Following the information, police conducted an investigation and detained 29 people. A total of NPR 9,268,505 (approximately Rs 57 lakh) was recovered from them.

Most of those detained are from the Mastar area of Galchi. The group also includes people from Adamghat and Adamtar, as well as people from Chitwan and Parsa districts who are residing in Dhading. Those detained are aged between 19 and 49.

Police are investigating which bank the recovered money belonged to and whether more people were involved in the incident.

Another shocking theft was also reported amid the flood disaster. Two people were arrested for allegedly removing a gold earring from the body of a woman that had washed up in the Narayani River. The arrests followed the circulation of videos on social media showing the jewellery being removed from the body.

Meanwhile, the scale of Nepal’s flood disaster is becoming increasingly severe. According to the latest figures from the country’s National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Authority, the death toll has risen to 626, while 2,426 people remain missing.