Spokesperson and Assistance Commissioner of Police, Ahmed Shifan, has attributed the recent hike in crime to the release of convicts.

In a post on X, Shifan said that 434 criminals had been released around 10 months ago, citing this as the reason for the increase in crime rates.

He added that the convicts were released without a proper system to monitor them. Shifan further added that as a result of lack of planning for infrastructure development in law enforcement, there have been challenges in resolving the hike in crime rates.

Shifans comments come at a time when there have been multiple complaints about thefts and other organised crimes in Male' city.

Recent investigations into the theft of VIA's Managing Director's vehicle led to the discovery of a large-scale vehicle-theft network.