A police investigation is currently underway over revealing the identities of Police and Customs officers who were involved in raiding the resorts of Jumhoory Party (JP) leader Qasim Ibrahim's Villa Group.
Maldives Customs Service in conjunction with Maldives Police Service had launched raids last Thursday on the resorts operated under the Villa umbrella, accusing them of illegally transferring alcohol and pork from one resort to the other.
In the wake of the raids, Villa released a press statement declaring that their resorts were raided and goods seized illegally. It called out the authorities involved, stating that they must be punished for their unlawful doings. In the statement, Villa announced that they have taken the names of seven police officers and 37 customs officers, who were actively involved in carrying out the raids, to the National Integrity Commission for investigation.
Customs has since released a statement defending their officers and condemning Villa for publicly releasing the identities of individual officers. In their statement, they called on the police to investigate this matter with utmost seriousness.
The request from Customs came amidst an ongoing police investigation into Villa for publicizing the identities of their officers. In a statement released by the police late Tuesday, they censured Villa Group and claimed it as an act of trying to hinder justice. Police also said that this was an act to threaten law enforcement officers.
The companies of Villa continue to deny the accusations of any illegal doings in the resorts while authorities are investigating the case.
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