Three expats detained in crackdown on illegal cafes in Hulhumale’

Three expatriate workers were detained by Maldives Immigration on Sunday, in a crackdown on illegally-run cafes in Hulhumale’.

The raid on the Hulhumale’ was conducted on Sunday by the special task force set up between Immigration and police to tackle irregular migration.

In a post on X on Monday, Immigration said they inspected a total of 22 expatriates during the raid.

Three expatriates found to be working illegally were detained, said the agency.

However, Immigration did not disclose the nationality of the expatriates detained in the operation.

The crackdown on irregular migration – launched in 2023 – has seen over 12,000 expatriates deported from the Maldives.

The authorities also launched ‘Operation Kurangi’ in May 2024, an initiative to collect the biometric data of all expatriates working in the Maldives.

Homeland Security Minister Ali Ihusan said in April that authorities were able to bring down the population of undocumented migrants from 72 percent to 38 percent over the last two years under the operation.

The third phase of ‘Operation Kurangi’, rolled out in May, focuses on the immediate identification, arrest, and deportation of undocumented expatriates and those with outstanding visa fees.