Police ordered to investigate allegations involving Artur brothers

Home Minister Dr. Mohamed Jameel Ahmed has said that the police have been ordered to investigate the accuracy of the information circulating in the media in relation to the Artur Brothers' activities in the Maldives.

Suspected of drug trafficking and other illegal activities, the Artur brothers are known to make deals with senior government officials in different countries around the world to carry out their illegal trades. The two Artur brothers were reported to have recently entered the Maldives.

Home Minister Jameel said that police have been instructed to gain information on how the Artur brothers entered the country, and also to look into the accuracy of the information circulating in the media regarding their activities.

International media reports have linked the two brothers Armenian brother Artur Sargsyan and Artur Margaryan to scandals in Kenya, where they were accused of being involved in a drug trafficking scandal and later deported from the country after the stories were reported by the Kenyan and international media.

Records show that the two brothers had recently registered a company in Maldives.

Named "Arthur Brothers World Connection", the company was registered in the Maldives Economic Ministry on the 14th of August 2012 with a licence to carry out tourism related businesses. The company lists 5 shareholders including one Maldivian, a man named Ismail Waseem of H. Ever Chance.

Although the purpose of their activities in the Maldives has not yet fully surfaced, local media has accused senior government officials of working with the Artur brothers.

Maldives immigration laws state that a person identified to be a threat to the social and religious harmony of the country shall not be allowed to enter the country. It also states a person is liable to be deported if the information declared to the immigration at the time of entry is proved to be false.

A senior official from the Department of Immigration has confirmed that they are currently investigating whether the Artur brothers are still in the Maldives, and whether the information they declared to the department is true.

The government has not yet made a statement regarding the issue.