Maldives Customs Services has said the 315 kg of drugs that were seized in a recent drug bust were not smuggled into the Maldives due to Custom's negligence.
In a series of operations carried out since last Wednesday, 315 kg of drugs were seized by the police. While 100 kg of heroin was found in the first part of the operation, ten arrests were made that day. Out of these, two have been released while 8 remain in detention. 215 kg of drugs were discovered later, and two were arrested in the operation.
When asked regarding the drug operation, Commissioner General of Customs Abdulla Shareef acknowledged that Maldives Customs plays an imperative role in monitoring teh country's borders. However, he does not believe there is any negligence on part of Maldives Customs nor its employees in large amounts of drugs being smuggled into the Maldives.
Shareef said Customs is not equipped with the resources and budget that it extended to the police and Maldives National Defense Force. Although the employees of Customs wish to perform better, budget constraints pose challenges in improving performance, he added.
'We are tirelessly working to obtain budget and resources. However, I do agree that we may not be able to get budget and resources due to the current circumstances. We are doing our best with the resources we have. I do not believe the drugs discovered in the recent operation entered the country due to Customs' negligence,' said Shareef.
Shareef further expressed concern that information regarding the drugs that were seized in the operation have not been shared with Customs to date. He said that the fact that such a large amount of drugs entered the country is dangerous and worrying.
Shareef said information regarding any operation implemented by Customs will be shared with the relevant authorities. All individuals detained and drugs seized in such operations will be handed over to Maldives Police Service, he said.
'This issue can only be resolved with the join effort of all relevant authorities. We need to improve and enhance our efforts in this department. We have not received information on police operations, maybe because investigation is still ongoing. It is also possible that we have not received the information as it was a domestic operation,' Shareef said.
The Commissioner General said all devices that need to be installed on vessels entering and exiting the Maldives for customs purposes are installed, and that Customs' employees regularly monitor the vessels. However, he admitted that not all vessels that enter Maldives are searched by Customs.
