By Purushottam P. Khatri
Kathmandu, Dec. 25: Nepal Police Wednesday said that the operation launched to nab over 120 Chinese citizens in Kathmandu was an old plan prepared in Santiago, Chile, in mid-October, 2019.
“Information regarding the illegal activities of the Chinese citizens who had arrived in Nepal on arrival tourist visas was shared at an informal meeting between the IGP of Nepal Police Sarbendra Khanal and Chinese police officers at the 88th General Assembly of Interpol held at Santiago of Chile,” Deputy Inspector General and chief at the Central Investigation Bureau (CIB) Niraj Bahadur Shahi said.
The General Assembly of Interpol was held in Chile from October 15 to 18 this year.
“Our IGP and Chinese officials had agreed to launch a joint operation in coordination with the National Central Bureau (NCB) of China, an institution solely liable to report information to the Interpol,” DIG Shahi said at a press conference organised to inform about the details of the incident today.
“After going through an investigation for the past two months in Kathmandu, we collected their information also with the Chinese police of the NCB and finally on Sunday, we executed ‘Charlie Foxter’, operation a code name given to conduct the operation,” DIG Shahi said.
The Chinese nationals forming a small group had arrived in Nepal some four months ago taking advantage of the Nepal government provision of giving free on arrival tourist visa up to 150 days, he said.
“We have received support and communication sharing from the NCB, Beijing, Chin, a not from the diplomatic level and channel to conduct this operation,” DIG Shahi said.
“Seeking five days remand order from the Kathmandu District Administration on Tuesday, the police filed an ‘indecent behaviour’ charge sheet against all 122 arrested Chinese national,” DIG Shahi said.
“As the investigation process is still underway, Nepal Police might prepare additional charge sheets as per the existing laws if they are found involved in other criminal activities.”
He said the police filed an indecent behaviour charge sheet against them as they turned out to be more defending and aggressive and also showed indecent behavior to the police squad.
The operation was jointly conducted by the CIB, Metropolitan Police Crime Division, Metropolitan Police Range, Kathmandu in nine houses which were taken in rent by them in Manamaiju of Tarkeshowre Municipality-1, Maharajgunj-3 of Kathmandu Metropolitan City and Budhanilkantha Municipality-3 of Kathmandu.
Of the detainees, 114 are male and eight female.
Police also seized 747 sets of mobile phones, 331 laptops, 98 computer CPU, 99 monitors, 22 pen drives, 327 SIM cards of the mobile phone and 67 passports.
Other passports possessed by them are yet to be found, police said.
CIB chief Shahi said that they had to conduct the largest ever police crackdown against any foreign national in Kathmandu after receiving information from the NCB, Beijing, about their involvement in trans-border cybercrime and other illegal activities.