Police raid ''drug den'' M. Lonumidhilige, arrests 8

Police raided M. Lonumidhilige last night as part of a crackdown on alleged drug dens run in the capital by drug networks. Lonumidhilige is thought to be one of the biggest such houses targeted by the authorities.

The raid saw the arrest of a total of eight people and the seizure of a large amount of money in addition to dru8gs discovered inside the house. Police arrested four minors, two local men, one local woman and one foreigner from the house.

20 rubber packets suspected to contain drugs as well as MVR 41, 127 were seized by authorities in the raid. The money seized include Maldivian as well as foreign currency.

Money seized in the raid include:

• 38,715 Maldivian Rufiyaa
• 142 American Dollars
• 15 Chinese Yuan
• 10 Singaporean Dollars
• 40 Thailand Baht
• 1 Kuwaiti Dinar
• 1 Saudi Arabian Riyal
• 5 Maldivian Rufiyaa (Old currency)

The money was discovered in the wallet of one of the minors arrested in the raid.

Under Maldivian law, allowing or authorizing or permitting the trafficking or peddling of drugs in a residence is a crime that can be punished by imprisonment of 10 years. It is also a crime to allow people to live in such a residence if the location is known or under suspicion for drug use.

Police also raided several other houses that acted as “café’s” for drug addicts, distributors and sellers in the capital in an operation that commenced on December 5, 2019.