The Nepal Police announced the arrest of four foreign nationals, including an Indian woman, on Thursday. The individuals were arrested for their alleged involvement in smuggling cocaine worth millions of rupees.
The Nepal Police identified the apprehended suspects as one, 39-year-old Tanzanian citizen Donald Jackson Mabuga, another, 33-year-old Bolivian woman Laura Kruz Tikon, the thrid suspect who was arrested was identified to be a 39-year-old Venezuelan citizen, Simon Antino Alfonjo Rada, and the fourth individual arested was a 27-year-old Indian woman, Lalruta Sangi. They were taken into custody with a total of 4.504 kilograms of cocaine, valued at ₹158 million, according to S.S.P. Dinesh Acharya, the chief of the Narcotic Drug Control Bureau of Nepal Police.
The arrests were announced during a press conference held in Kathmandu. According to police reports, Donald Jackson Mabuga had ingested 18 plastic-coated capsules of cocaine and traveled to Kathmandu from Ethiopia. Police recovered 1.206 kilograms of cocaine from his possession.
Bolivian national Laura Kruz Tikon had concealed 2.1 kilograms of cocaine within 121 cotton buttons. She was detained three days prior at Tribhuvan International Airport upon arriving on an Emirates Airlines flight from Brazil and Tanzania.
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Venezuelan citizen Simon Antino Alfonjo Rada had similarly ingested 39 capsules of cocaine, weighing 1.198 kilograms. He was arrested on Wednesday at a hotel in Thamel, a well-known tourist hub in Kathmandu, following a tip-off.
According to the reports, the Indian national Lalruta Sangi was arrested from the same hotel in Thamel when she arrived to purchase the drugs. The authorities reported that Sangi intended to transport the drugs to the national capital, New Delhi.
Followed by the arrests of the four individuals, the police have also launched an extensive investigation into the case with the aim to uncover the broader network that maybe involved in this international drug trafficking operation.
