Large number of animals confiscated in police search

Maldives Police Service has confiscated a number non-native species of animals kept in houses across the country, in a special search operation today.

The confiscated animals include an owl, a black widow spider, two snakes, a number of iguanas, mice and some hamsters. Import of these animals, alien to the Maldive Islands, is prohibited.

Speaking at a press conference in Iskandar Koshi this afternoon, Minister of State for Environment and Energy Hassan Shah said that some of the animals imported to the country illegally are declared endangered and protected by international organization.

“You have to understand, we don’t have the anti-venom to treat snake or black widow bites in the Maldives,” Hassan Shah said, in an effort to underline the seriousness of the matter.

The search operation was launched this morning, led by the Maldives Police Service and supported by the Ministry of Environment and Energy, Ministry of Fisheries and Agriculture, Maldives Customs Service and the Maldives National Defence Force (MNDF).