Maldives Police Service has revealed that there are more than 1,000 regular customers at so-called ‘Drug Cafes’ or hotspots where illegal drugs are sold.
At the media event held today by the Drug Enforce Department of Maldives Police Service, Department Head and Superintendent of Police, Ahmed Shakir said that approximately 1,118 locals regularly visit these drug cafes or hotspots, and a majority of these people have quit from rehabilitation programs.
As per the statistics revealed by Maldives Police Service, 139 expatriates regularly visit these drug hotspots. This includes 134 Bangladeshis, 3 Indians, and 2 Srilankans. Moreover, there are around 63 homeless locals who have fallen into drug addiction.
Further statistics reveal that there are 65 females and 14 underage kids who visit these hotspots regularly and the majority of these people are from Male’ City.
Shakir also highlighted that 146 expatriates were involved in drug trafficking cases and 525 expatriates were involved in selling alcohol illegally from 2015 to 2021.
Maldives Police Service investigated 67 cases related to drug trafficking last year and locked around 34 drug cafes or hotspots.