Two Chinese, 115 Nepalis arrested in two raids in valley
KATHMANDU, FEBRUARY 22
Nepal police have arrested two Chinese nationals and over a hundred Nepalis in two raids in Kathmandu valley for their involvement in fraudulent cyber activities.
Acting on a tip-off, Kathmandu Metropolitan Police Range first arrested a group of 37 people, including a Chinese from Old Baneshwor last night. The Chinese national, whose identity has been kept secret by the police, used to operate illegal business activities targeting Indians with the help of Nepali workers. They had officially registered the company called Lewan Group 'to provide legal IT services for business houses in the capital'.
After their arrest, police were able to bust a larger racket in Sano Thimi, Bhaktapur. Eighty people, including a Chinese national named Wang Zinao, 29, were arrested in the second raid carried on a three-storey office building. The operator used to live in nearby Sun City Apartments.
A total of 48 laptops and 14 desktop PCs were confiscated from the office.
Police said that the majority of the arrested Nepalis were employees getting a monthly salary of Rs 15,000 to Rs 20,000, whereas top-level employees, including the Chinese boss, earned in millions. Salaries and other benefits were transferred to workers' accounts from China, as per the police.
Superintendent of Police Santosh Singh Rathor of Metropolitan Police Office, Ranipokhari, said arrestees ran illegal online 'loan providing' services in India. They used to lure Indians to use apps like Lone Cube, Rupee Way, and Wo Rupee where they were promised INR 3,000 100,000 at an interest rate of 2.5 to 3.5 per cent for three to five months without having to provide any guarantee or proof of their monthly income, as per SP Rathor.
Deputy Superintendent of Police Raju Pandey of Bhaktapur Police Range said the racketeers provided INR 10,000 to 15,000 to loan seekers in exchange for access to their social media sites and legal documents.
"Things would get murky when those arrested today would call loan receivers and threaten or intimidate them to return money at higher interest rates or face action," DSP Pandey said. Pandey said the racketeers often used to block their clients' social media accounts or cause them legal trouble since they had copies of their legal documents.
He said to motivate employees, bonus was paid via China.
Those arrested will be produced in the court and charged under Rastra Bank and Financial Transaction Act.
A version of this article appears in the print on February 22, 2022, of The Himalayan Times.
