Return of the Serpent

Inspector Bishwa Lal Shrestha was 32 years old when he tried to arrest Asia's most notorious murder suspect for the killing of two backpackers in Kathmandu. Shrestha examined their corpses, interviewed eyewitnesses, called in handwriting experts, grilled his "restless" suspect, and was soon sure he had the right man. But in December 1975, Nepal was incredibly polite to foreign visitors so Shrestha's superiors told him to respect the do not disturb sign on the door of Charles Sobhraj's room at Kathmandu's smartest hotel. The inspector's men waited in the lobby for two days for Sobhraj to surrender like a gentleman. Instead,...