A special team of Sri Lankan security officials has arrived in the Maldives to hold diplomatic discussions on extraditing six Sri Lankan nationals arrested last week by Maldivian security forces, following the seizure of a fishing vessel carrying over 300 kilograms of narcotics.
According to Sri Lanka Police Media Spokesman ASP F. U. Wootler, the delegation includes officers from the Police Narcotics Bureau and the Sri Lanka Navy, who departed Colombo earlier this week to participate in joint talks and investigations in Malé.
The vessel was seized in Maldivian waters after intelligence provided by the Sri Lanka Navy indicated that a drug-laden boat was operating within the Maldives’ maritime zone. The Maldives National Defence Force (MNDF) intercepted the vessel using an Air Corps UAV and detained six Sri Lankan crew members, who remain in custody pending investigation.
Sri Lankan media reports state that the vessel was part of a major international trafficking network using Sri Lanka as a transit hub, with alleged ties to the notorious narcotics trafficker “Dehibale Malli.”
ASP Wootler said diplomatic-level discussions are ongoing between Maldivian and Sri Lankan authorities, and further investigations will aim to determine the mastermind and ownership of the seized narcotics.
This development marks an escalation in bilateral cooperation between Malé and Colombo in tackling transnational drug trafficking across the Indian Ocean, with both nations pledging stronger coordination in maritime security and criminal intelligence.
