A foreigner has been arrested for attempting to smuggle drugs weighing more than 15 kilograms, into the Maldives.

This was revealed during a press conference held jointly by the Maldives Police Service (MPS) and Maldives Customs Service on Monday.

MPS revealed that the drugs were being smuggled into the Maldives by a Malaysian national.

The 44-year-old Malaysian national touched down in Velana International Airport (VIA) with the drugs at 7:40am on July 27.

Cannabis was found inside the package, weighing a total of 15.38 kilograms.

The confiscated drugs carried a street value of MVR 12.3 million.

Highlighting that this is the biggest confiscation of drugs so far this year, MPS revealed that further investigations are currently underway.

MPS went on to reveal that an international network spanning four countries, is expected to be involved in the case.

The police institution highlighted that this was a significant success for the authorities in their ongoing efforts to combat drug trafficking and smuggling across the Maldives, as well as efforts to crackdown on such networks.