A man who tried to climb Mount Everest without paying the $11,000 (£8,510) permit fee has been detained after being caught by officials and told to expect a heavy fine.
South African Ryan Sean Davy, 43, claims to have climbed alone to a height of 7,300m (24,000ft) before he was found hiding in a cave.
He has apologised but complained of being treated "like a murderer".
It is extremely rare for someone to attempt climbing Everest by themselves.
The overwhelming majority of climbers only tackle the highest mountain in the world with the help of at least one guide and a well-equipped support team at base camp.
Nepal relies heavily on income generated from Everest expeditions.
Officials told the AFP news agency that Mr Davy tried to escape government climbing officers who saw him near the base camp. They followed him to an isolated camp that he had set up in a cave to avoid being spotted.
Mr Davy said on Facebook that "expedition companies have no time for wannabe Everesters with no money so someone turned me in".
He said he was "harassed at base camp to a point that I honestly thought I was going to get stoned to death right there".
"I was treated like a murderer," he wrote.
The climber said that his passport had been confiscated and he was being sent to Kathmandu where he could expect to spend time in jail in addition a fine of $22,000 (£17,000).
Mr Davy said that he was ashamed that he could not afford the permit after all the help he had received from family and supporters during his training.
"It would have been a total embarrassment to turn around and accept defeat because of a piece of paper," he said.
"So I took a chance and spent the little money I had on more gear to climb and practise on the surrounding peaks for acclimatising in preparing for a stealth entry on to Everest... Unfortunately the system caught up with me."
He has now asked for forgiveness from "a lot of people who are really upset" with him.