Immigration raid in Thilafushi results in 33 arrests and 22 notices issued

The Immigration Task Force, in a raid operation in Thilafushi , arrested a foreigner and issued written notices to 22 persons.

The Immigration Department said in a statement that the task force conducted a raid operation against illegal immigrants in Thilafushi yesterday morning

Twenty-eight immigration officers and 35 police officers participated in the raid, which checked 257 foreigners, the post said.

In addition, 33 foreigners were arrested without valid visas and 22 were given written notices.

Immigration is conducting a series of operations to track down illegal immigrants. A large number of foreigners have been taken into custody and 5,000 foreigners have been deported so far this year.

The government aims to expand the operation to all the islands in Maldives within the next year and bring the information of all foreigners in Maldives into a single database. The government also aims to bring about a comprehensive solution to the foreigners' issues within three years.