Mount Everest guides have been accused of drugging foreign climbers to trigger unnecessary helicopter rescues as part of a $20 million (£15 million) insurance fraud scheme, according to an investigation by Nepali police. The scam, which operated between 2022 and 2025, affected 4,782 international climbers, with more than 300 cases of alleged fake rescues uncovered.
Police have arrested 11 people and charged 32 in connection with the fraud, which involved sherpas, trekking company owners, helicopter operators and hospital executives. The rescue companies allegedly extracted nearly $20 million in payouts from international insurers for rescues that were unnecessary or completely fabricated.
Investigators say guides used methods including lacing food with baking powder to simulate altitude sickness symptoms, and giving excessive water with medications to trigger gastric distress. After trekkers reported nausea or dizziness, they were advised to descend and agree to costly helicopter evacuations. Operators then forged medical and flight documents to claim costs from insurers.
In some cases, operators inflated costs by billing each passenger as if they had taken a separate helicopter flight, even when multiple people were flown together. Hospitals also created false admission reports for tourists not receiving care. The scam has caused harm to Nepal's national pride and dignity, according to the Nepal Police's Central Investigation Bureau.
This is not the first such scandal; a similar network was exposed in 2018, but reforms were not fully implemented. Manoj Kumar KC, chief of the CIB, told the Kathmandu Post that lax punitive action allowed the scams to continue. Travel insurance companies have previously threatened to remove Nepal coverage if the fraud persisted.
Simon Calder, travel correspondent of The Independent, said: 'Anyone who has been lucky enough to visit Nepal... will be shocked to learn of this scam. The vast majority of people involved in tourism in Nepal are honest. It's important to seek reliable recommendations before choosing a company for your trip.'
