A Maldivian diplomat in India used state finances for personal use, an audit of the foreign ministry reveals.

The 2017 audit report of the foreign ministry states that the third secretary of the Trivandrum Maldivian Consulate took MVR 24,094 from the consulate’s safe.

The audit report states that the diplomat, who is unnamed, also used MVR 7,935 as petty cash for his own use.

Noting that even senior officials are prohibited from using state finances for personal use, the report advised the foreign ministry to document the amount of money being spent and for what purpose.

It also advised the ministry to penalize officials who have neglected documenting the unlawful use of state finances in this case.

The audit report also states that some diplomatic missions had spent MVR 236,003 outside of regulations and that the ministry had used MVR 1.9 million worth of services and property without permission.