In a significant breakthrough, Bongaigaon Police in Assam, India, have arrested two Bhutanese nationals for the murder of Tek Bahadur Ghalley, a pickup truck driver from Samtse, whose body was found near the Aie River on March 27, 2025.
The two suspects, Thenrap Lepcha (also known as Subash Pradhan) and Krishna Prasad Adhikari, were on the run for 10 days before being apprehended. Thenrap Lepcha was arrested on April 10 in Siliguri, while Krishna Prasad Adhikari was taken into custody the following day in Dadgari.
The vehicle of the deceased, which had been missing since the crime, has since been recovered.
The arrest operation was carried out using mobile tower location tracking, which led the police to Thenrap Lepcha, who was hiding in the Bhupendra Nagar area of Siliguri.
Both suspects, who are in their late 30s, are originally from Bhutan. Thenrap Lepcha hails from Burkey in Samtse and had previously worked at a workshop in Samtse, while Krishna Prasad Adhikari is from Dorokha. The victim, Tek Bahadur Ghalley, in his late 20s, was also a native of Samtse.
The investigation revealed that both suspects had confessed to the crime. They struck the victim on the head with a stone during the night of March 26, between midnight and 1 a.m., in a forest area between Santabari and Gelephu. The victim, who temporarily resided in Jaigaon, had traveled to Gelephu to collect a consignment, but he never arrived.
Reports indicate that the crime was committed under the influence of alcohol, with the motive being to steal the vehicle and sell it. The trip was orchestrated as a ploy to kill the victim midway, making the murder appear like a routine journey.
On the day of the crime, Krishna Prasad Adhikari contacted the victim, who was in Bhutan, to arrange for transporting excavator parts from Gelephu to Samdrupjongkhar. The victim then picked up Adhikari from Manglabari Bazaar in Jaigaon and Thenrap Lepcha along the way from Hasimara.
After the murder, the perpetrators moved the body to the Aie River and attempted to sell the pickup truck for INR 250,000, having already received an advance of INR 50,000.
Krishna Prasad Adhikari is married with two daughters but has been living separately from his wife, who resides with his parents in Dorokha. He had been working in Thimphu after leaving a private construction job in Samtse. His close friend revealed that Adhikari had been involved in several civil disputes, particularly financial matters, from Samdrupjongkhar to Thimphu.
The deceased, Tek Bahadur Ghalley, worked as a pickup driver and is survived by his wife and their 11-month-old son.
Bongaigaon Police will prosecute the case, and Royal Bhutan Police, particularly the Gelephu Division, has been closely collaborating with the Indian police in this investigation.
