Former Maldivian vice president arrested in Thoothukudi for illegally entering India

Thoothukudi: Former Maldivian Vice President Ahmed Adeeb Abdul Ghafoor was apprehended by the Intelligence Bureau (IB) officials on Thursday for allegedly entering India illegally.

The former Maldivian vice president was arrested by the officials at Tuticorin (Thoothukudi) port in Tamil Nadu. According to reports, Adeeb Ahmed Ghafoor travelled to India in a tug boat, posing as a crew member.

Officials said that Ahmed Ghafoor was travelling to India without any valid papers and a probe was on to find out why he tried entering India in the unauthorised manner. 

According to a Maldivian daily, Abeed had travelled to India after the courts in the Maldives dismissed several convictions against him. Despite the reversal of his conviction, his passport was withheld by Maldives Immigration owing to the ongoing probes against him, the report said. 

Adeeb has been named in multiple criminal cases, including a graft case pertaining to Maldives Marketing and Public Relations Corporation (MMPRC) in which state funds worth at least US $90 million were allegedly embezzled. He was also accused of being involved in a money laundering case.