KATHMANDU: A Nepal Airlines employee has been arrested at Tribhuvan International Airport after authorities allegedly found undeclared foreign and domestic currency worth around Rs 5.47 million being prepared for illegal transport abroad.
According to the Airport Security Office, the arrested individual has been identified as Kamal Narayan Biswas, a 50-year-old resident of Gadhi Rural Municipality–1, Sunsari, currently living in Banasthali, Kathmandu.
Biswas has been working for Nepal Airlines as a Ground Equipment Operator (GEO) for the past 16 years.
Police said he was arrested on Monday night while preparing to travel to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, on Batik Air flight OD181 on a visit visa.
During routine screening and physical inspection, security personnel reportedly discovered multiple foreign currencies hidden inside a metal cooking pot placed in his black luggage.
The seized amount includes USD 14,850, OMR 2,970, MYR 23,632, PKR 3,540, LKR 7,770, JPY 41,000, 1,000 West African CFA francs, and Rs 1.11 million in Nepali currency.
Authorities said the total value of the seized cash amounts to Rs 5,471,689.32.
Police added that no valid currency declaration was found during passport and customs checks. Preliminary records also show that Biswas had travelled abroad 26 times previously.
Following the arrest, he has been handed over to the Department of Revenue Investigation in Hariharbhawan, Lalitpur, for further investigation and legal action.
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