Maldives Police Service Sunday said that over 115 kilograms of drugs were found in the vicinity of the run aground Iranian boat that was set ablaze Thursday.
In a joint press conference by the police and the Coast Guard Sunday afternoon, police spokesperson Ahmed Shifaan said that 14 different types of drugs were found during the search.
However, since the crew had set fire to the boat, the total amount of drugs it was carrying is not yet known, he said.
Some of the drugs the boat was carrying had drifted ashore to nearby islands in the northernmost Haa Alif atoll.
Over 300 grams of substances washed ashore in Molhadhoo in Haa Alif atoll, while two grams of drugs drifted into Ihavandhoo, and 4.2 kilograms of drugs were found on two uninhabited islands in the atoll, the police revealed.
A crew of eight – one Pakistani man and seven Iranians – were captured by the authorities, and they are currently in custody, Shifaan confirmed. He said that they all tested positive for various types of drugs.
It was initially reported that the crew had set fire to the boat when the Coast Guard was about 50-feet away, and jumped in to the sea with lifejackets. The run aground boat was first spotted by local fishermen Thursday morning.
The police spokesperson said that he does not believe that the haul of drugs was being trafficked only to the Maldives, saying: “when we thought about this, we found it hard to believe that this amount of drugs would be brought solely to the Maldives – especially after we compared this to previous, similar cases.”
Shifaan said that the police are investigating how the vessel may be involved in the drug trade.
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