In a major breakthrough, the Nepal police apprehended the alleged kingpin of the Gurgaon kidney racket, Amit Kumar, somewhere near the Indo-Nepal border on Thursday evening.
Nepal’s Minister of Home Affairs Ram Kumar Choudhary confirmed that 'a person named Amit Kumar Raut' was arrested from a resort in Sauraha at around 1700 hours on Thursday.
The minister said he has received reports from the DIG that the police team also recovered Rs 1.5 crore of Indian currency, $1,45,000 and euro 9,36,000 from the person.
The arrested person "has links with a big kidney racket in India and there are cases against him in Nepal as well," the minister said.
The Nepal police arrested the man from a jungle resort camp in the southern town of Sauraha, about 60 km from the Indo-Nepal border town of Raxaul.
The Sauraha resort in Chitwan district, about 60 km from Raxaul in Bihar. The journalist, however, said the identity of the arrested person is yet to be confirmed.
Sources said Dr Kumar and his Nepali associate Manish Singh checked into Room Number 6 of the Hotel Wildlife Camp around 10 am on Thursday morning under Singh's name. Other reports said the doctor had checked into the hotel with two other people.
Sources say the doctor was trying to use a cyber cafe in the area when some local people identified him and tipped the police.
A short while later a police team reached the hotel and began enquiring about the guests. The policemen showed the receptionist a picture of Dr Kumar and sought to know whether he was staying in the hotel. Even as the receptionist made a positive identification, the Nepali associate of Dr Kumar, Manish Singh, fled the place.
The police team then rushed to the room and arrested Dr Kumar. Amit is being brought by road to Kathmandu where the Indian High Commission will be intimated formally on Friday.
Talking to CNN-IBN, the SSP of Nepal Crime Branch, Upendra Kanta Aryal, said that the Nepal police have made some 'positive progress' in the case.