Nepalese police are investigating a case in which Mount Everest guides are suspected of poisoning climbers to get them to book expensive air evacuations, in an insurance fraud that could be worth up to $20 million.
The Independent writes about this.
A police spokesman told The Independent that 32 people have been charged, including 11 operators and managers of mountain rescue companies. Investigators say the fraud involved a wide range of stakeholders in the trekking ecosystem, including Sherpas, trekking company owners, helicopter operators and hospital managers.
Investigators say the guides used a variety of methods to induce helicopter evacuations, including simulating medical emergencies and mixing large amounts of baking soda into food to induce stomach upsets commonly associated with altitude sickness. Some were given medication with excessive amounts of water to induce symptoms.
After tourists reported feeling sick, dizzy or had body aches, they were advised to disembark and agree to an expensive emergency helicopter evacuation. Authorities said the operators then used forged medical and flight documents to claim reimbursement from international insurance companies.
When the “rescue” operation began, the operators inflated costs and billed each passenger as if they had taken a separate flight, even when several people were flying together.
The scam could have affected 4 782 climbers around the world between 2022 and 2025. Police said they had uncovered more than 300 cases of alleged fake rescues, with climbers and insurers being scammed out of nearly $20 million.
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