Two men have been arrested by Nepalese police for allegedly stealing gold earrings from the body of a woman swept away by strong currents during severe flooding along the Narayani River.
The arrests came after a 41-second video showing the pair allegedly removing the earrings from the deceased woman went viral on social media.
Nepal Police later reshared the footage and confirmed that the two men had been detained on suspicion of stealing the earrings from the victim’s ears.
In the video, the men can be seen pulling the woman’s body out of the water using a wooden plank and her hair.
They then appear to remove earrings from both of the woman’s ears and place them aside, while several other people can be seen nearby recording the incident.
Chitwan police said preliminary investigations established that the body belonged to a flood victim who had been swept into the Narayani River during the major flooding.
Based on the footage, police identified the suspects as Madan Gurung, 25, and Umesh Chaudhary, 38.
Nepalese news portal Khabarhub reported that both suspects were arrested near Pokhara Bus Park in Bharatpur Metropolitan City-1 on Thursday.
Police stressed that theft and other inhumane acts against victims during a crisis would not be tolerated.
The arrests come as Nepal continues to grapple with one of its worst flooding disasters in recent years, with rescue teams navigating muddy and damaged areas in an effort to locate more than 1,400 people still reported missing.
At least 472 people have reportedly died, while several villages have been destroyed by powerful floodwaters and landslides.
Across the border in Tibet, fast-moving mud also struck a multi-storey port building and submerged a bus parking area at the Gyirong Port land border crossing on Wednesday, according to Chinese state broadcaster CCTV.
The surrounding area was reportedly covered by mud averaging more than 1.5 metres deep.
Roads leading to the border crossing have also been damaged, while the risk of further collapses and landslides remains as heavy rain continues in the affected region.
The incident involving the two suspects has added another disturbing dimension to a disaster that has already left hundreds dead and thousands unaccounted for.
