Police: Maldives’ scam recovery rate among ‘global best’, competing with UK, US

Maldives Police Service, on Thursday, stated that the country’s scam recovery rate—the proportion of funds lost to fraudulent activities that authorities have successfully recovered—is at a "global best" level, with only the United Kingdom and the United States reporting comparable rates.

Speaking at a press briefing, Head of the Anti-Scam Center, Inspector of Police Adam Naveed disclosed that 1,584 scam cases have been reported so far this year, involving 1,580 Maldivian victims.

The incidents resulted in total losses of MVR 15.6 million, of which police have successfully recovered MVR 6 million.

Inspector Naveed said the recovered amount represents 44.3 percent of the total funds lost to scams.

"I wish to highlight that the results currently achieved in the Maldives regarding anti-scam efforts are among the best globally," Naveed stated.

He explained that the United Kingdom and the United States are the only countries with recovery rates comparable to that of the Maldives, at approximately 40 percent. However, he noted that banks in those countries often provide full reimbursement to victims when their accounts have been completely compromised, whereas the recovery rate recorded in the Maldives reflects funds physically recovered by law enforcement authorities.

So far this year, 852 victims have received full reimbursement of their stolen funds, while police have recovered and returned a portion of the losses incurred by an additional 320 victims.

According to Naveed, online transactions involving the purchase of goods or services account for the largest share of scams reported in the Maldives. Of the cases recorded this year, 821 involved e-commerce scams. Currency exchange fraud was the second most common category, with 244 cases reported.

Authorities have also dealt with 213 cases involving identity theft and various forms of booking cancellation scams so far this year.

The Inspector revealed that 2,803 accounts linked to fraudulent transactions were frozen for 48 hours, while a further 530 accounts were frozen for three months pursuant to court orders.

In relation to these cases, 53 individuals have been arrested, while 25 cases have been referred to the Prosecutor General’s Office for charges. Four individuals have so far been formally prosecuted.

Police statistics show that Malé recorded the highest number of scam cases, with 506 incidents, followed by Addu City.

Naveed further noted that scam victims in the Maldives are predominantly between the ages of 18 and 40. He attributed the effectiveness of such fraudulent schemes partly to individuals who lease their bank accounts to scammers, while also noting that victims frequently fall prey to scams due to insufficient caution.