Kathmandu : Following devastating floods in Nepal, authorities have issued a stern warning against keeping or selling flood-swept valuables, highlighting the legal consequences and a recent incident involving a looted bank safe.

Nepal Police warns against keeping, selling flood-swept valuables. Nepal Police urged citizens to return valuables found after the August 26 floods to the nearest police office.
Keeping, selling, or concealing flood-found items is an offence and can lead to legal action.

The warning follows the arrest of 29 people for allegedly looting a bank safe swept downstream by the floods.
Flash floods, triggered by an ice-rock avalanche, devastated towns and villages in northern and central Nepal.

Disasters can create conditions for increased theft, looting, and fraud while security personnel are occupied with search and rescue operations.

Nepal Police on Sunday urged people not to keep, sell or distribute gold, silver, cash and other valuables found after the August 26 floods, and asked them to hand over such items to the nearest police office.

The police said people who find such property or important documents should inform the authorities and help return them to their rightful owners. 

It warned that using, concealing, keeping, or buying and selling such items could constitute an offence and could result in legal action.

Bank Safe Looting Incident Prompts Warning : The police did not specifically link Sunday's warning to any particular incident, but the appeal came after a recent case in which 29 people were arrested in Dhading district for allegedly breaking open a bank safe that had been swept downstream by the flood and taking cash from it.

The safe was found on the bank of the Trishuli River at Belkhukhola in Galchhi Rural Municipality, according to Kantipur news portal. The suspects were later arrested.
Nepal Police has separately said disasters can create conditions for increased theft, looting and fraud while security personnel are occupied with search and rescue operations.

Flash floods, triggered by an ice-rock avalanche near the Nepal-Tibet border on August 26, devastated towns and villages in northern and central Nepal.

The Bhotekoshi River, which flows south from the Himalayan border region, carried the floodwaters downstream, sweeping away homes, vehicles, roads and bridges and damaging hydropower projects.

It has killed more than 1,300, while around 5,000 people remain missing.