Two foreigners remanded over unlicensed business activities

Two foreign nationals were arrested and remanded in custody on Wednesday on charges of operating a business without a licence.

The two men, both Bangladeshi nationals, were arrested and produced before the Criminal Court, which ordered that they be held in custody for 15 days. They are identified as Afjal Hossain and Habibur Rahman.

According to the court order, both men are accused of conducting business activities without the required licence. The order states that evidence had been presented to the court in support of the allegations.

Referring to a detailed intelligence report submitted by the Maldives Police Service, the court noted that the alleged activities involved multiple individuals and that a large amount of money had circulated in connection with the business.

Afjal and Habibur denied the charges during a closed hearing. The court order did not specify the nature of the business activities involved. Police have not released further details regarding the case.

Concerns have previously been raised about unlicensed business activities carried out by foreign nationals in the Maldives. Last month, the Ministry of Economic Development issued a public notice requesting reports of such activities.

The ministry said 29 businesses were reported within the first two days following the announcement. A special task force has since been established to investigate the matter, and several businesses have been halted as part of the operation.