Kathmandu, June 24 – In a dramatic turn of events, Amala Roka—one of the key figures linked to the 60-kg gold smuggling case—was rearrested at the very gates of the court, moments after being released on bail.

The Kathmandu District Court had ordered Roka’s release on a bail amount of Rs 200,000 following a detention hearing conducted by a single bench led by Judge Balram Lamsal. However, just as she was stepping out of court, a team from the Central Investigation Bureau (CIB) swiftly took her back into custody at the request of the Department of Money Laundering Investigation.

Confirming the development, CIB spokesperson Superintendent of Police Yubraj Khadka said the bureau acted on an official request from the money laundering authority, which is now pursuing a separate investigation against Roka.

Roka, the wife of Belgian national Dawa Chhiring—the alleged mastermind of the 60kg gold smuggling and other gold smuggling operation—had been evading authorities for over 18 months. She was finally apprehended last Friday by CIB operatives from Tokha, on the northern part of Kathmandu.

Her arrest follows the issuance of a diffusion notice by INTERPOL, which had been tracking her international movements due to her suspected involvement in the case.

The smuggling scandal erupted on July 18, 2023, when more than 60 kilograms of gold concealed inside brake shoes made it out of Tribhuvan International Airport, only to be intercepted by the Department of Revenue Investigation shortly after. The haul stunned the nation and prompted a sweeping crackdown on a suspected transnational smuggling network.

In connection with the case, the Office of the Attorney General has filed charges against 29 individuals, including Roka. As investigations widen to include money laundering and cross-border financial trails, authorities appear determined to leave no stone unturned.

People's News Monitoring Service