The Bhutanese Leading the way.
In early June 2018, the Royal Bhutan Police (RBP) arrested a Dzongkhag Kidu Officer named Chencho Gyeltshen after a Drayang Owner filed a complaint of alleged rape against him for allegedly raping a Drayang worker, who was later found to be 17-years-old.
At the time, the initial police investigation and the forensic report from the Trongsa hospital could not establish rape as the doctor who investigated the case on the same night said there was no sign of struggle, no evidence of penetration and no spermatozoa.
The Trongsa court in 2018 June end itself granted bail to Chencho on the basis of the forensic report not establishing rape as otherwise the Civil and Criminal Procedure Code (CCPC) at the time did not allow bail for a person charged with second degree felony and above cases.
Rape is a second-degree felony.
However, the Trongsa police was not satisfied and decided to send the forensic samples for DNA testing abroad.
The reason being that a married person or a sexually active person will not show signs of penetration and use of condom would also prevent spermatozoa.
In the meantime, after getting bail, in a major lapse from the Crime Branch of the RBP Headquarters, Chencho managed to get a No Objection Certificate (NOC) for applying for his visa to Australia.
This is even though the Trongsa police had sent the case details and information to the headquarters.
Though the bail conditions asked Chencho to not leave Trongsa Dzongkhag, Chencho managed to get his visa to Australia and left for Australia in August 2018 itself.
As per the procedure with the case going on in Trongsa and with the information sent to Thimphu, the Crime Branch should have entered it into his NOC record.
If this was done then there would be no way for Chencho to get the visa or leave the country. In fact, Chencho continued to renew his NOC from abroad with ease for several years only until recently.
Another issue here is that the bail system in Bhutan unlike in some other countries does not impound travel documents like passport etc.
Given that the DNA testing was sent abroad it took a long time for the report to come.
The report was opened virtually in front of the SP, new Trongsa OC, an Office of Attorney General official and the Drayang owner on 3rd October 2022.
Chencho in an interview to The Bhutanese from Australia said he was not told the result as it was said that it was confidential, however, he alleged that a friend of his playing snooker with the Drayang owner on 22 October overheard the OC telling the Drayang owner that the result was positive.
The Trongsa court summoned Chencho to come before the court to hear the result of the DNA test but by then Chencho refused.
Chencho had been given bail based on the guarantee of a relative who was an instructor in a Vocational Training Institute and his lawyer.
The lawyer was dead and the relative who initially promised to get Chencho also fled and could not be traced.
Since neither Chencho nor his bail guarantor could be found the new Drangpon in the Trongsa Court initiated action and got the RBP to send a Red Notice to Interpol against Chencho.
Talking from Australia Chencho Gyeltshen alleged that the Drayang owner who complained against him and the then OC who arrested him both had personal grudges and he had earned their ire in the course of his official duty.
He also alleged that the new OC was also close to the former OC who arrested him.
He alleged the fact that the DNA result had been leaked out to the Drayang owner leading to him also finding out showed they were trying to impute a rape crime on him out of personal grudge.
He alleged that the Drayang owner and the OC who arrested him had pressurised the girl to file a complaint.
Chencho also alleged that the DNA samples were not collected from the alleged place of incidence which was the ground floor of the Drayang but from his bedsheet and underwear at home and from the house of the girl’s friends.
He said a government official who shared a house with him told him about the police coming for DNA samples and drayang staff told him about the police going to the girl’s friend’s house.
The Bhutanese contacted the OC who had arrested Chencho but he declined to comment saying he is not allowed to speak, but he said Chencho should come to Bhutan in front of the court and prove his allegations.
The Drayang owner also denied Chencho’s allegations saying the matter is between the OAG and Chencho and he has nothing to say. He said if Chencho has any evidence on any grudge then he should present it.
The Drayang owner also denied hearing about the test result saying he only came to the opening representing the girl as the mother is in the village. He said the SP and OC were there and the result was not told.
He said he instead was legally prosecuted for employing a 17-year-old and his license was cancelled by the government.
Chencho said the Red Notice must have reached around 3 to 4 months ago as since then his NOC is not available. He said he has hired an international lawyer to fight the Red Notice stating that the whole case is to frame him due to personal grudges.
He said the Australian system does not assume guilt right away especially since he has a good track record in Australia.
He also says there is no arrangement to extradite people from Australia to Bhutan.
Interpol says a Red Notice is a request to law enforcement worldwide to locate and provisionally arrest a person pending extradition, surrender, or similar legal action. A Red Notice is not an international arrest warrant.
The individuals are wanted by the requesting member country, or international tribunal. Member countries apply their own laws in deciding whether to arrest a person.
The majority of Red Notices are restricted to law enforcement use only.
Chencho claimed the Red Notice has not impacted him in any way and he continues to do his work. He said he has not been arrested or detained by the Australian police.
He said he is loyal to his country and he wants to come back one day but only if there is going to be justice.
In the 2011 amendment of the CCPC it was said the Court shall not grant bail to a person who has been charged with; an offence against the security and sovereignty of the country; and an offence of or above felony of the second degree.
The CCPC amendment in 2021 changed this to the Court shall not grant bail to a person who has been charged or anticipated to be charged with; an offence against security and sovereignty of the country and an offence of or above felony of the first degree.
