KATHMANDU: Police have arrested a jewellery shop owner and an employee in Butwal for allegedly staging a fake theft at their own business in an attempt to claim insurance money.
According to police, Deepak B.K, owner of Tinau Jewellery Shop in Amarpath, Butwal Sub-Metropolitan City-5, and employee Nabin B.K were taken into custody on Wednesday on charges of orchestrating a false theft incident.
On May 31 (Jestha 17), Deepak B.K had filed a complaint claiming that gold and silver ornaments worth Rs 14.61 million had been stolen from his shop. He had told police that he was in Pokhara at the time of the incident and that the shop’s CCTV system was not functioning.
However, a detailed investigation uncovered several inconsistencies in the reported theft, police said. Investigators concluded that no actual theft had taken place and that the incident was allegedly staged to claim insurance compensation and conceal discrepancies related to the shop’s gold, silver and cash records.
According to police sources, attempts had been made to create the appearance of a break-in by unlocking the channel gate and making it seem as though outsiders had entered the premises. Investigators also found indications that the locker had been tampered with using different keys to simulate forced entry.
Police claim that the alleged theft at the jewellery shop, which has been in operation for nearly four decades, was in fact an internally planned scheme.
A joint team from the Lumina Province Police Office, the Provincial Investigation Office and the Rupandehi District Police Office is carrying out further investigation against the two suspects on charges of criminal breach of trust.
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