Nepal police arrest another trekking operator in Everest fake rescue scam
Pasang Sherpa becomes the 10th person detained as investigators probe an alleged scheme staging unnecessary evacuations of foreign trekkers to claim millions from insurers.
Nepal Police have arrested a trekking company operator in connection with an alleged fake helicopter rescue scheme targeting foreign trekkers in the Everest region, authorities said Wednesday.
The Central Investigation Bureau of Nepal Police said Pasang Sherpa of Panorama Himalaya Trekking and Expedition was taken into custody as part of an ongoing investigation into fraudulent rescue and insurance claims in Nepal’s mountaineering and trekking areas.
Police said the investigation began after two foreign nationals filed an electronic complaint alleging misconduct during a 2025 trek to Everest Base Camp.
According to the complaint, the trekkers said a guide and a trekking company operator arranged for a helicopter to fly them to Kathmandu without their consent, admitted them to a hospital and later claimed rescue and medical insurance payments.
Sherpa is the 10th person arrested by the bureau in connection with the alleged fake helicopter rescue scheme used to make insurance claims.
Those detained in the case include individuals linked to a trekking company, a helicopter operator, a rescue service, a hospital and a Nepal-based agent of a foreign insurance company.
Police say the alleged scheme involved staging unnecessary helicopter evacuations of foreign trekkers in high-altitude areas to claim reimbursements from international insurance companies.
The CIB first announced arrests in the case in January, when police detained six individuals associated with three companies accused of fabricating emergency helicopter rescues involving foreign tourists in mountainous regions.
On January 25, police arrested Jayaram Rimal and Bibek Pandey of Mountain Rescue Service Pvt. Ltd.; Rabindra Adhikari and Bibek Raj Thapaliya of Nepal Charter Service Pvt. Ltd.; and Mukti Pandey and Subhash KC of Everest Experience and Assistance Pvt. Ltd.
Investigators concluded that the three companies defrauded international insurance companies of more than $19.65 million.
On February 8, police arrested Dr. Girwan Raj Timilsina of Shreedhi Hospital in Kathmandu as the investigation expanded into what authorities described as a coordinated network involving rescue agencies, aviation companies and medical facilities.
On February 25, police also arrested Rajendra Bahadur Singh, 56, managing director of Mountain Helicopters Pvt. Ltd., and Sandip Tiwari, 26, an operator of Royal Holidays Adventure and Travel Company Pvt. Ltd.
Singh, a former vice president of the Airlines Operators Association of Nepal, is a prominent figure in the tourism sector. He also served as an aviation expert on a high-level Civil Aviation Sector Reform Committee tasked with reforming Nepal’s aviation sector.
Police said further investigation into the case is ongoing.
