Police on Sunday made public the alleged mastermind and shooter of 2010 murder of a trader couple in Butwal.

The accused has been identified as Arjun Gautam, of Sainamaina Dudhrachhya, Rupandehi. He had been hiding in India following the incident.

Rupandehi police arrested Gautam from Belhiya border point while he was returning Nepal from India.

The owner of Jesis Chowk-based Bishnu Bhandari Stores in Butwal Bishnu Bhandari, 24, and his wife Asha Bhandari, 28, were shot dead in broad daylight on June 23, 2010.

After the incident, Gautam decamped with Rs 518,000 from the grocery. Gautam’s elder brother Krishna Gautam, who had assisted Arjun in the crime, is still on the run, District Police Office, Rupandehi, Chief Shyam Gyawali said.

A few months after the incident, police had arrested six persons out of eight involved in the murder. Three of them have been sent behind bars with confiscation of property, while three have been released.

Following the incident, traders in Buwal had resorted to protest for a long time demanding peace and security.