Maldives arrests foreigner seen taking photos of a police raid
He does not represent any news agencies
Police vehicle active near Off Day Inn
A foreign national, seen taking pictures of a police raid at an opposition campaign centre, has been arrested.
Officers had raided the headquarters of the main opposition Maldivian Democratic Party on Wednesday night.
33-year-old Irani-born Dutch national, Hamon Nasiri Honarvar was arrested from his place of residence- Off Day Inn- in the capital Male' City, after the said raid was conducted.
RaajjeMV understands that Honarvar does not represent any news agencies, and that he is in Maldives on holiday.
He is a photography student.
A credible source informed RaajjeMV that, prior to his arrest; police searched Honarvar and had not found any pictures of the raid. However, cooperating with the police, he had handed over his camera's memory card to them.
While RaajjeMV can confirm his arrest, he was taken into police custody with his belongings.
RaajjeMV was unable to get a comment from the Maldives Police Service (MPS) as its media official did not respond to our calls.
Back in July 2016, Italian photojournalist, Elwira Szczecian and husband were arrested over the same reason.
While Maldivian authorities accused her of "practicing journalism while on a tourist visa," Elwira denied that she visited the country in her capacity as a journalist. Maldives Immigration issued them a 10-year ban from the country.
In addition, a German TV crew was deported in December 2015.
