Man Wanted for Multiple Kathmandu Cooperative Burglaries Arrested While Attempting to Rob Bank in Solukhumbu

Solukhumbu. A man who was on the run after breaking into various cooperatives in Kathmandu has been arrested in Solukhumbu's Salleri while attempting to rob a bank.

The District Police Office, Solukhumbu, arrested 38-year-old Dhan Kumar Rai from Deusa, Thulung Dudhkoshi Rural Municipality-7, in connection with a series of thefts.

Last Tuesday, at around 1 AM, Rai, wearing a mask, entered the NIC Asia Bank branch office in Salleri Bazaar. After breaking the lock of the main door, he began vandalizing the channel gate on the second floor using an iron rod. During this act, other residents of the building noticed the commotion and raised an alarm, causing him to flee, leaving the iron rod behind.

Based on the bank's CCTV footage, the police tracked him down and arrested him the same day in the afternoon from Nele Bazaar, along with the materials used in the incident.

During the investigation, it was revealed that Rai had also committed a major theft in Deusa, Solukhumbu. On Kartik 10, he broke into the grocery store of local Phramraj Khatri and stole NPR 700,000 in cash and thousands of rupees worth of recharge cards. The police recovered the stolen Ncell recharge cards during a search of his house, confirming his involvement.

The arrested Rai is a person previously convicted in theft and robbery cases in Kathmandu. According to the police's Crime Record System (CRS), he had broken into 'Purnima Savings and Credit Cooperative' and 'Shubh Binayak Savings and Credit Cooperative' in Chabahil, Kathmandu, in Kartik 2081 BS. The Kathmandu District Court had sentenced him to 3 months and 5 days in prison, a fine of NPR 15,000, and compensation of NPR 429,000 for that case. However, he fled without serving the court's verdict, returned to his village, and engaged in a series of thefts again.

According to Police Inspector Bikash Rai, the Information Officer at the District Police Office, Solukhumbu, it appears that the individual may have committed criminal acts in other districts as well. The police stated that further investigation is underway and urged any potential victims to come forward.