Inside MVR 2.2m sea cucumber scandal: an officer, an MPL employee, and the trail to auction
A police officer and a port employee allegedly orchestrated the theft of sea cucumbers worth over MVR 2.2 million from a Chinese investor in Thilafushi. Despite the victim tracing the stolen goods to locations including a high-ranking official's residence, police seized the items and refused to return them. Following claims of internal interference and an attempted bribe, authorities declared the owner unknown and announced a public auction for the confiscated stock.
RaajjeTV has confirmed that the sea cucumbers recently announced for public auction by the police were seized during an investigation into a theft case involving a police officer. | RaajjeMV | Raajje MV
Privately-run RaajjeTV’s news team launched an investigation, following a public announcement by the Maldives Police Service (MPS) in the government gazette on 9 February 2026 regarding the auction of seized sea cucumbers. RaajjeTV’s news team moved to uncover the origin of the confiscated goods. However, what the team dug up was not a routine forfeiture of unclaimed items, but a calculated operation involving a serving police officer and an employee of the Maldives Ports Limited (MPL).
The shipment in question was valued at more than MVR two million. Evidence gathered by RaajjeTV indicates it was procured through a major theft orchestrated by those entrusted with public responsibility.
The background
Kelvin, also known as King Ming Lyung, a 65-year-old Chinese national, has been engaged in the sea cucumber trade in the Maldives for several years. Operating through partnerships with local associates, Kelvin provides the capital investment. His Maldivian partners purchase sea cucumbers from across the country, store them in a rented warehouse in Thilafushi and prepare them for export. All export-related expenses are borne by Kelvin, while local partners receive an agreed commission.
In October 2025, Kelvin began working with an MPS Investigation Officer (IO). The warehouse in Thilafushi used to store the stock was rented under the officer’s name. RaajjeTV’s investigation, supported by documents, photographs and video evidence, confirmed the officer’s identity. An employee of MPL was also directly involved in purchasing operations, and this individual’s identity has likewise been verified.
After Kelvin transferred funds to the police officer and the MPL employee, they proceeded to acquire sea cucumbers and store them in the warehouse registered under the officer’s name.
Within approximately two months, the value of the stockpile in the warehouse exceeded MVR two million. Two expatriates were hired to provide round-the-clock security. Financial records and receipts obtained by RaajjeTV show that between October and late December 2025, Kelvin spent over MVR 2.2 million on stock. Of this amount, MVR 550,000 was transferred directly to the police officer, while MVR 1,100,000 was deposited into a corporate account belonging to the MPL employee.
The theft
At approximately 3pm on 29 December 2025, the police officer arrived in Thilafushi and instructed the two expatriate security guards to accompany him to Hulhumalé to collect four containers of sea cucumbers.
One guard questioned the necessity of both men going, pointing out that someone needed to remain behind to secure the warehouse. The officer insisted. Both guards ultimately accompanied him.
Instead of returning promptly, the officer diverted to Malé City, claiming he needed to refuel. Back in Hulhumalé, he told the guards to wait while he left to pray. After roughly ninety minutes, he returned and directed them to board a vessel named “Maduvvaree Usmaniya” to collect four containers. By the time they returned to Thilafushi, it was past 7:30pm.
The investigation established that the officer dropped the guards at the jetty but did not disembark. He left immediately.
When the guards entered the warehouse, they found it completely emptied. The bags that had filled the facility just hours earlier were gone.
Panicked, they contacted the police officer. He appeared unconcerned and instructed them not to inform Kelvin, stating he would handle communication with the owner.
Chat logs obtained by RaajjeTV reveal that the officer only informed Kelvin of the alleged theft late that night, claiming he had received a call from one of the guards. He assured Kelvin he would file a report with the police the next morning.
During this period, the officer attempted to shift blame onto the guards. He suggested to Kelvin that a creditor had stolen the goods and was demanding MVR 200,000 for their return. He also sought to have the guards deported by accusing them of involvement.
The uncovering of the plot
CCTV footage attained by RaajjeTV confirms that the theft occurred precisely during the window in which the officer had removed the guards from Thilafushi.
Inconsistencies in the officer’s account raised Kelvin’s suspicions. Frustrated by the lack of progress, Kelvin and his associates initiated their own search for the 79 stolen bags. A formal complaint was submitted to the police on 1 January 2026, yet the case was not officially registered until 4 January 2026.
While the official investigation stalled, Kelvin’s team traced the movement of the goods. Though there were no cameras inside the warehouse, nearby facilities were equipped with CCTV systems. Footage from 29 December 2025 captured the bags being loaded onto a pickup truck at approximately 5:30pm.
The driver was identified and later disclosed that the cargo had been transferred to a boat at a jetty in Thilafushi. Additional footage identified the vessel that transported the goods away from Thilafushi.
The captain of that vessel confirmed that it docked at the Malé T-Jetty. CCTV footage then showed the bags being transferred to another pickup truck and driven to a vacant lot near a garage on Sayyid Kilegefaanu Magu.
Through these findings, Kelvin’s team established the locations where the sea cucumbers were being stored.
Recovery of the stolen goods
Kelvin’s team presented their findings to the police.
On 8 January 2026, acting under a court order, police raided Apartment 402 of M. Sigma, recovering 22 bags of sea cucumbers. RaajjeTV confirmed that this apartment is the residence of the President of the Civil Service Commission, Mohamed Mujthaz, who was seen on video during the raid. The recovered bags were transferred to Dhoonidhoo for storage. The investigation indicates the apartment had been used to store the goods while its regular occupants were away on Umrah.
A second search was conducted on the night of 10 January 2026 at a house on Bulbulaa Magu, with the owner’s consent. Police recovered 57 additional bags. Present at the location was another MPL employee identified as a close associate of both the police officer and the first MPL employee implicated in the case.
Initially, police agreed to return the 57 bags to Kelvin, noting they were unprocessed and had been recovered without a court order. However, following a phone call from a high-ranking official, authorities reversed their decision and seized these bags as well.
Interference in the investigation
The following day, the lead IO was replaced. The new IO, stationed at Henveiru Police Station alongside the suspect officer, assumed control of the case.
During questioning, the suspect officer first claimed the stolen goods were his own. He later altered his account, asserting that the stock belonged to three individuals: himself, the first MPL employee, and a business partner residing at M. Sigma.
The attempted deal
Subsequently, the officer approached Kelvin’s lawyer with a proposal, the goods would be released if Kelvin agreed to surrender 50 percent of the stock or pay MVR 500,000.
When confronted in Kelvin’s presence, the officer continued to assert ownership and claimed the MPL employee was responsible for exporting the goods. However, when the Investigation Officer contacted the MPL employee via speakerphone, the employee denied possessing an export license.
Despite this contradiction, the officer became aggressive and the police ultimately refused to return the goods to Kelvin.
Refusal to return the goods
Although assurances were repeatedly given that the stock would be released, police continued to cite shifting reasons for withholding it. Ultimately, authorities claimed ownership could not be verified.
A substantial portion of the sea cucumbers has since spoiled while in police custody.
Kelvin alleges that the goods are being deliberately withheld because the implicated officer can no longer profit from them. On 9 February 2026, the police formally announced that the sea cucumbers would be sold at auction, asserting that the owner remains unknown.
The gazette notice marked not the resolution of a theft, but the culmination of a chain of events that began with entrusted authority and ended with a multimillion-rufiyaa shipment reduced to a contested asset under state control.
