Foreigner with communicable disease in hiding, search underway

A foreign national suspected of having an communicable disease is currently in hiding in Maldives, and his details have been circulated on social media to alert the public.

According to posts shared online, the individual is a 31-year-old Bangladeshi man who has been residing in Maldives since 2014. He was employed at a factory in Vilimale’, where he had been working for the past two years.

A factory worker told Mihaaru News that the man was recently diagnosed with an infectious disease following a medical test required for his visa renewal. While the specific illness was not disclosed, Health Protection Agency (HPA) informed the company that the disease is communicable.

The company then decided to send the individual back for treatment, and he had boarded the ferry to Velana International Airport on the morning of May 26. However, it later emerged that the man never boarded a flight and had not left the country.

The employee said that as the individual remains missing, his information was posted for public safety. HPA, however, said that personal health information is confidential, even in cases involving communicable diseases.

Maldives Immigration stated it has not received any formal report about the case. The police are also not officially involved yet. The social media post urged anyone with information about the man’s whereabouts to call 7478833.