The Bhutanese Leading the way.
The Royal Bhutan Police have admitted negligence in the custodial death case of Biren Kafley, while maintaining that there was no foul play involved in the incident.
An internal inquiry conducted by the Human Resource Committee (HRC), a sub-committee of the Police Service Board (PSB), the highest decision-making body in the police is currently reviewing the matter and is expected to finalize its findings and recommendations on disciplinary action by coming Monday.
A senior police official said that the inquiry has ruled out torture, beating, or any staged incident leading to Biren’s death. However, he acknowledged that procedural lapses occurred and that those responsible would be held accountable through disciplinary measures once the review process is completed.
Addressing allegations of custodial assault, police said multiple pieces of evidence collectively rule out foul play. This includes CCTV footage showing the deceased coming out of detention in an active state and entering the police vehicle while handcuffed. Another CCTV recording, secured from a private residence prior to the deceased being sent back to the office, shows he was walking normally as he entered the jail van.
Police said this footage demonstrates that Biren was physically fine after identifying his supplier and before being escorted back, which means that people assuming that he was assaulted and thrown in the location are not correct.
Police also cited a live witness, the supplier identified by the deceased who saw him before he was escorted back to detention.
Additionally, police shared images with the media showing the deceased before being taken to identify the supplier and after the identification, further asserting that there were no visible signs of physical abuse.
Dashcam footage from the police vehicle was also reviewed as part of the inquiry. According to police, the footage shows that it took 10 minutes and 23 seconds to travel a distance of 3.3 kilometers from Babesa to the point of the incident by the police van, whereas in a private van it took around 6 mins. They said this proved that the van was not speeding.
The vehicle reportedly started at 13:33:15 pm and reached the incident location at 13:43:32 pm.
Police said that given it was the final day of the GPPF, traffic congestion was evident and speeding was not possible. The officer on duty had reported that the vehicle speed remained within 40–50 kmph.
Police said the forensic report identified the cause of death as high-impact blunt force trauma.
An official from police said that since the report was mostly only medically understandable, they approached forensic experts again. Police said the expert explained that if any physical force or weapon had been used, there would have been dents or cracks indicative of assault.
Instead, the forensic report concluded that the fatal head injuries sustained are most consistent with a fall from a height or from a moving vehicle.
Police said the jail van sustained damage during the incident, including a broken rear door latch and shattered back window, which they attributed to the deceased kicking the door during an attempt to escape. The vehicle has since been sent for repairs.
Responding to public suspicion, a senior police official questioned why the police would target the deceased when the same operation led to the arrest of larger drug traffickers. “Because of the deceased, we could arrest two main supplier on the same day. We have arrested bigger fish in the past, including cases involving 10,000 to 15,000 SP capsules during COVID-19. Biren was a small trafficker in comparison. Why would we do something to him and nothing to those bigger fish,” he says.
Police further stressed that on the day of the operation, none of the detainees were innocent.
According to police records, five individuals were initially arrested on 13th November, 2025 from Changbangdhu, Thimphu. Among them were four males and one female.
The 5 initial arrests consisted of four abusers who were a Desuup (25 male), a sculptor (24 male), a business man (24 male) and a Female (21 unemployed). The fifth who was a taxi driver (29 male) was caught as a trafficker. The Police clarified that although the taxi driver was primarily a consumer, the quantity of drugs found in his possession exceeded the legally permissible limit, leading to his classification as a trafficker.
Following the above were three more arrests. They were Biren (32 unemployed), a mechanic workshop helper and supplier of Biren aged 27 and a Truck driver aged 35 who supplied the mechanic.
Police said that during interrogation, three individuals (from the initial five arrested) identified the deceased as their supplier and it was supported by bank transactions made to Biren. The taxi driver (29), who knew the deceased’s residence, accompanied police to his home, leading to his arrest.
Although no drugs were found in his possession at the time, police said that he tested positive for drug use, and bank transaction records matched those provided by the earlier suspects.
Police said the deceased later confessed in his written statement to supplying drugs and identified his supplier as the mechanic. The following day, police escorted Biren to Olakha to identify the supplier and the location.
In the deceased’s presence, the supplier was arrested, and drugs were recovered during a house search.
The supplier later disclosed that his own source was a truck driver.
As police moved to arrest the truck driver, a police van was called to escort the deceased and the seized drugs back to the Narcotics, Drugs and Other Vices Division (NDOVD). The incident leading to the death occurred while he was being escorted in what police say was an attempt by him to escape.
Since there were no CCTV cameras available in the exact location, apart from the prime eye witness account who saw the deceased jumping or falling from the police, there are no other evidence to prove the exact account.
However, police got hold of a video from social media of the incident time where in the video few people surrounding the deceased were captured too. In the photo, 4 individuals are seen surrounding the deceased by the incident footpath.
Meanwhile, another police team had proceeded to apprehend the truck driver and successfully arrested him near the Babesa Sketcher showroom, recovering drugs from the truck.
Police said that despite the deceased being unemployed at the time, his bank records showed frequent financial transactions. They also noted that the deceased had previously been convicted and served five years for drug trafficking and had resumed drug trafficking after his release.
From the initial arrests, police said four individuals, three males and one female were identified as drug abusers and have since been sent for Substance Use Disorder (SUD) treatment. The remaining individuals, including the 29-year-old taxi driver who identified the deceased as his supplier, the deceased’s supplier, and the truck driver, were identified as traffickers and will be charged accordingly.
Police also provided broader statistics to contextualize the incident, stating that 3,667 detainees were arrested in drug-related cases in 2023, 3,319 in 2024, and 3,329 in 2025. Biren’s case, the police said, was the only custodial death recorded during this period.
As the disciplinary review nears completion, police said they hope the release of evidence and findings will help clear misunderstandings surrounding the case, while reaffirming that accountability will be enforced for lapses identified during the inquiry.
