Banking News – A United States federal court has convicted 58-year-old Kenneth Joseph Coombs for sexually abusing children while living in Nepal, years after he completed a nine-year prison sentence in Nepal for the same crimes.

According to the US Department of Justice’s Office of Public Affairs, the federal jury found Coombs guilty of child sexual abuse offences committed in Nepal. He was arrested by US law enforcement authorities in September 2025 after returning to the United States and has remained in custody since then. His sentencing is scheduled for October 28.

The case originated from an investigation launched by Nepal Police’s Central Investigation Bureau (CIB) after receiving intelligence about an organized network that trafficked boys from remote villages to urban areas and facilitated their sexual exploitation by foreign offenders.

On September 9, 2016 (Bhadra 24, 2073 BS), CIB officers arrested Coombs from Yambu Hotel in Thamel, Kathmandu, along with Buddha Putuwar, also known as “Luchche,” who was accused of assisting him in the abuse.

The Kathmandu District Court sentenced Coombs to nine years in prison on April 23, 2017 (Baisakh 10, 2074 BS), while Putuwar received a four-year prison sentence.

According to the US Department of Justice, Coombs sexually abused eight children while staying at a hotel in Nepal in 2016. Prosecutors stated that he used force, administered intoxicating substances, and lured the victims with money to facilitate the abuse.

Investigators also recovered photographs of the victims from Coombs’ electronic devices, which were used as evidence during the US prosecution.

The US Department of Justice acknowledged the assistance provided by the US Embassy in Nepal, Nepal Police’s Central Investigation Bureau (CIB), the Kathmandu District Government Attorney’s Office, and the Nepali non-governmental organization Naulo Paila during the investigation.