KATHMANDU // Nepalese police today launched a murder investigation after the body of a Belgian woman was found decapitated in a popular trekking spot in the Himalayas.
Debbie Maveau, 23, had been missing for 10 days before her badly decomposed body was found on June 14 beneath a hiking trail in the Langtang National Park, on the Tibetan border, police said.
"Her head was around 13 inches from the rest of her body," local inspector Bhakta Sunuwar told AFP, adding police had no leads on the culprit and were trying to establish if she had been killed by someone she met before the trek.
Sunuwar said robbery and rape were unlikely motives since her underwear had not been removed and her camera and 8,000 rupees ($93) in cash were not taken.
"People are not cooperating with the investigation. Everyone in the area says they have not seen her," he added.
"We found that she had travelled to Dhunche from Kathmandu by bus but none of the drivers in the area confirmed that they had seen her."
A growing number of assaults in Nepal's Himalayan national parks have led to a US Embassy warning against trekking alone in the region.
American Lena Sessions, 23, was hiking solo in December in Langtang when she was threatened with sexual assault by a masked man with a knife, but managed to escape. The incident came a week after a South Korean woman was assaulted nearby.
Specs
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Company Profile
Founder: Omar Onsi
Launched: 2018
Employees: 35
Financing stage: Seed round ($12 million)
Investors: B&Y, Phoenician Funds, M1 Group, Shorooq Partners
Infiniti QX80 specs
Engine: twin-turbocharged 3.5-liter V6
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Michael J Mazarr
Public Affairs
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Members of Syria's Alawite minority community face threat in their heartland after one of the deadliest days in country’s recent history. Read more
Tomorrow 2021
Women & Power: A Manifesto
Mary Beard
Profile Books and London Review of Books
Real estate tokenisation project
Dubai launched the pilot phase of its real estate tokenisation project last month.
The initiative focuses on converting real estate assets into digital tokens recorded on blockchain technology and helps in streamlining the process of buying, selling and investing, the Dubai Land Department said.
Dubai’s real estate tokenisation market is projected to reach Dh60 billion ($16.33 billion) by 2033, representing 7 per cent of the emirate’s total property transactions, according to the DLD.
AndhaDhun
Director: Sriram Raghavan
Producer: Matchbox Pictures, Viacom18
Cast: Ayushmann Khurrana, Tabu, Radhika Apte, Anil Dhawan
Rating: 3.5/5
Bombshell
Director: Jay Roach
Stars: Nicole Kidman, Charlize Theron, Margot Robbie
Four out of five stars
Key recommendations
- Fewer criminals put behind bars and more to serve sentences in the community, with short sentences scrapped and many inmates released earlier.
- Greater use of curfews and exclusion zones to deliver tougher supervision than ever on criminals.
- Explore wider powers for judges to punish offenders by blocking them from attending football matches, banning them from driving or travelling abroad through an expansion of ‘ancillary orders’.
- More Intensive Supervision Courts to tackle the root causes of crime such as alcohol and drug abuse – forcing repeat offenders to take part in tough treatment programmes or face prison.
The specs
AT4 Ultimate, as tested
Engine: 6.2-litre V8
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Price: From Dh330,800 (Elevation: Dh236,400; AT4: Dh286,800; Denali: Dh345,800)
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December 9 - 24: Handicrafts competition, from 4pm until 10pm, Heritage Souq
December 11 - 20: Dates competition, from 4pm
December 12 - 20: Sour milk competition
December 13: Falcon beauty competition
December 14 and 20: Saluki races
December 15: Arabian horse races, from 4pm
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December 18: Camel milk competition, from 7.30 - 9.30 am
December 20 and 21: Sheep beauty competition, from 10am
December 22: The best herd of 30 camels
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