Kathmandu, 18 Jul: Another individual has been arrested in connection with the Miteri Cooperative fraud case, which is based in Mahalaxmisthan, Ward 5 of Lalitpur Metropolitan City.
The Central Investigation Bureau (CIB) of Nepal Police has arrested Suresh Adhikari, a resident of Ward 7, Basgadhi Rural Municipality, Bardiya. He was operating a hotel in Makalbari, Kathmandu, at the time of his arrest.
CIB spokesperson and Superintendent of Police Yubraj Khadka stated that Suresh Adhikari was also found to be an associate of Jyotibahadur Bhandari, the main accused in the fraud case.
“It appears that Adhikari worked as an aide to Jyotibahadur. Since financial transactions were managed through him, we have proceeded with further investigation,” Khadka told Onlinekhabar.
With this, the number of people arrested in the Miteri Cooperative fraud case has reached three.
Earlier, the CIB, with the help of Interpol, had arrested 42-year-old Jyotibahadur Bhandari, a resident of Ward 7, Basgadhi Rural Municipality, Bardiya, from Cambodia. He was brought to Kathmandu on the night of Asar 4.
Following Bhandari’s arrest, Subash Khatri, a resident of Ward 9, Dhunibesi Municipality, Dhading, was taken into custody on Asar 15. Khatri was arrested after his connection to Bhandari was discovered.
During further investigation, Suresh Adhikari was also arrested. It has been revealed that both Adhikari and Bhandari are from the same locality—Basgadhi-7—and have known each other for a long time.
According to the CIB, after Bhandari fled the country following the fraud, Adhikari and Khatri assisted him from within Nepal.
“Bhandari and Adhikari are from the same village. After Bhandari left the country, Adhikari carried out all operations inside Nepal as per his instructions,” a CIB investigation officer told Onlinekhabar.
Organized Crime Investigation Underway in Miteri Cooperative Scam
Initially, the Central Investigation Bureau (CIB) had begun investigating the Miteri Cooperative fraud case under charges of fraud only. However, as the investigation progressed, it was found that the fraud had been carried out in a coordinated and planned manner by a group of more than three individuals. As a result, the case has now been converted into an organized crime investigation.
CIB Spokesperson SP Yubraj Khadka stated that the investigation is now proceeding under both fraud and organized crime charges, after it was confirmed that Jyotibahadur Bhandari conspired with Suresh Adhikari, Subash Khatri, and others to carry out the scam.
With the case now categorized as organized crime, police are entitled to a 60-day investigation period. The CIB has also expanded its probe to include offenses related to cryptocurrency, hundi (illegal money transfer), and document forgery.
Authorities believe that a significant portion of the defrauded funds was transferred abroad through cryptocurrency and hundi channels.
Moreover, Bhandari is now under investigation for possessing dual citizenship and passports, which falls under document-related offenses. According to the CIB, he had obtained one passport (no. 10548…) from Kaski District, and another (no. 11364…) from Bardiya.
Similarly, it was found that Bhandari also held two separate citizenship certificates from two different districts—one numbered 15883 from Kaski, and another numbered 14803 from Bardiya.
Investment in Cambodian Casino
According to sources from the Central Investigation Bureau (CIB), Jyotibahadur Bhandari invested a portion of the fraudulently obtained funds in a casino in Cambodia, using hundi and cryptocurrency to transfer the money abroad. While in CIB custody, Bhandari reportedly admitted to making such investments, although the claims are still under investigation.
CIB spokesperson SP Yubraj Khadka confirmed the investigation is ongoing and said no definitive statements can be made at this stage.
“We are actively gathering evidence related to the embezzled funds and their destination. It’s confirmed that the money was transferred abroad, but we are still investigating exactly where and how it was invested,” Khadka said.
All three suspects currently in CIB custody — Bhandari, Subash Khatri, and Suresh Adhikari — are not members or officials of Miteri Cooperative. However, the fraud was allegedly carried out through Jyoti Gurung, who was the General Manager of the cooperative at the time and is also known as the former wife of Nepali Congress Vice President Dhanraj Gurung.
Bhandari is accused of using Jyoti Gurung as an intermediary to access cooperative funds. After embezzling the money, both Bhandari and Gurung reportedly fled the country.
CIB’s investigation suggests that Khatri and Adhikari assisted Bhandari in transferring the stolen funds abroad. The funds were then allegedly invested in a Cambodian casino.
It has also been revealed that Jyoti Gurung helped connect Bhandari to other officials of Miteri Cooperative, assuring them via WhatsApp that he would repay all the funds. Later, it became apparent that Bhandari himself had defrauded the cooperative.
Using Gurung as a point of contact, Bhandari lured Miteri Cooperative officials into an online phishing scheme, eventually scamming them even further.
After embezzling cooperative funds, Bhandari fled Nepal, traveling through Thailand, Malaysia, and Vietnam before reaching Cambodia, where he continued to contact the cooperative via online platforms and carried out further phishing-based fraud.
Bhandari Swindled Over NPR 34.4 Million While Abroad, Promising to Repay Cooperative Funds
While still abroad, Jyotibahadur Bhandari fraudulently extracted NPR 34,474,320 from the cooperative, under the pretense of repaying dues.
As per Jyoti Gurung’s assurance, Bhandari had committed to repaying the full amount owed to Miteri Cooperative, including principal and interest—totaling NPR 148.1 million (14 crore 81 lakh). To build trust, he sent forged documents to the cooperative’s officials, claiming that he would deposit the amount within a few days.
He told the cooperative’s office bearers via WhatsApp that he had already transferred NPR 331.1 million (33 crore 11 lakh) to the Indrachowk branch of Global IME Bank, under the name of Miteri Cooperative Secretary Krishna Bahadur Rana. He even sent a photo of the bank token to make the transfer appear credible.
However, police investigations have revealed that Bhandari used this as part of a sophisticated scam. By claiming that he had already sent more than the required NPR 148.1 million, he tricked the cooperative into believing that they needed to pay taxes or fees in order to release the amount—thus leading them to transfer additional funds multiple times, which he then swindled.
