The Office of Attorney General (OAG) on May 3 submitted its rebuttal statement, concerning the larceny case of Nangsel Goenpa to Punakha District Court.
The OAG rebutted that the 29-year-old suspect, who is pleading his innocence before the court of law is not true. It charged the suspect of committing the offence against Ku-Sung-Thuk-Ten or Zung of Nangsel Goenpa.
The OAG stated that suspect had stolen relics on two different occasions. One was in September last year, when he went to meet the caretaker of the goenpa. That time, he stole one Dzee (cat eye) and two Bjurus from the cupboard when the caretaker was away for some laundry works.
The OAG reiterated that the suspect sold the stolen items in Thimphu.
In another incident, which took place in December last year, the accused again visited Nangsel Goenpa on pretext of offering prayers. He spent the night there and when the caretaker was in deep slumber, he stole two Buddha statues and a silk cloth from the cupboard.
The OAG also presented to the court that the suspect is not only a former monk but also served as a caretaker at the same monastery for several years and has ample knowledge of the relics kept in the monastery.
The OAG will present the seized stolen items (cat eye, two Buddha statues and a silk cloth) to the court during the evidence hearing in due course of time.
The two Buddha statues along with a silk cloth were recovered from suspect himself while the cat eye was retrieved from the buyer. Since the buyer went missing thereafter, the two Bjurus couldn’t be recovered.
So, the OAG requested the court to issue arrest warrant against the buyer, who has been charged with fourth degree felony (minimum prison term 3 years to maximum 5 years).
The suspect faces charges of first degree felony, which includes minimum prison terms of 15 years to maximum of life imprisonment.
