Kathmandu: Notorious criminal Charles Sobhraj, arrested in Kathmandu from a hotel casino, on September 20 denied his involvement in the deaths of two women in Nepal in 1975 and said he had come to the country only to establish an export business.

Police said Sobhraj would be produced in court on September 22, where he will be charged for the alleged murder of the two women and also for violating immigration laws.

Superintendent of police at the Kathmandu district police office Ganesh K C said that Sobhraj had arrived in Nepal on September 1 from France travelling on a Dutch passport.

Police also confiscated a French passport from Sobhraj with the name Bintanja Henricus, Ganesh said. "He can be tried under the Immigration Law for travelling on double passport and we have already started action against him under the Immigration Act," he added.

Sobhraj was staying at a hotel in Nayabazaar on the outskirts of Kathmandu before his arrest.

He was questioned about his alleged involvement in the deaths of an American and a Canadian woman near Kathmandu in December 1975. Murder charges were registered against him in 1976 in the two cases.

However, Sobhraj claimed during interrogation he had never been to Nepal before, Ganesh said. He said his current visit was only to set up a business to export Nepalese pashmina and handicrafts to foreign countries.

Sobhraj, also known as 'Bikini Killer' and the 'Serpent', is suspected of killing at least 20 people in India and nearby countries between 1972 and 1982. He was jailed for 21 years in India before being deported to France in 1997.

PTI