It is said that crime and sex stories sell well in the media. This could be true considering the questions from the public on the stories local media report, often without follow up. The media is under pressure for not completing the story. In other words, the public wants to know what has happened when a story, with or without public interest, is published.
A case, fresh in the minds among the public, is the USD 450,000 smuggling case that media reported a year ago. As the alleged smuggling case happened when the country was faced with the shortage of convertible currency, especially the USD, many are wondering how an individual managed to hide USD 0.45M in whisky boxes.
True to what the public suspect, there is not much development. Officials are currently working to verify a memo written in Thai!
Meanwhile, those following the case are becoming skeptical, as the case is shuffled between the police and the Office of the Attorney General. The biggest question so far was who owned the USD when the country was going through a convertible currency crisis.
The new question, after an update on the issue, is if authorities have any clue or new developments. The statement that no actual dollars were seen or CCTV footage showing an individual carrying three K5 whisky boxes without evidence of him physically handling the cash has raised more questions.
This is because customs officials in Thailand seized the dollars, in cash, at the Bangkok International Airport after scanning the man’s baggage and his handbag at the exit gate and found the dollars. The question among Bhutanese is how did an individual manage to allegedly smuggle out USD 0.45 million. Many are shocked as the amount, when converted to our currency, amounts to millions of Ngultrum.
Solving crime cases take time. It becomes more complicated when third parties are involved. In the USD smuggling case, many suspect there are more than the Bhutanese man involved. However, when authorities delay investigations and actions for high profile cases, it raises suspicions. Many say that given the good relations between Thailand and Bhutan, the case could have been resolved in just a few months, if not weeks.
As far as those following the story are concerned, it is not a complicated case. A Bhutanese flying on a Druk Air flight was arrested by Thai customs with USD beyond the approved limit at the Bangkok airport. The cash was seized and the man was allowed to go home. The incident made public the gaps or how people could easily circumvent strict airline regulations.
Until the case is resolved and made public, at the earliest, many would assume there were collusions in breaching strict regulations to encourage smuggling. They have the right especially when three forex smuggling cases were reported at Paro International Airport in just one year.