A dive instructor says three divers surrounded him 60 feet underwater in the Maldives, and one reached for his mask and regulator

The National Boating Association of Maldives (NBAM) called for a thorough, impartial, and transparent investigation in a statement on X after a scuba instructor alleged that three divers confronted him about 18 meters (60 feet) underwater. The instructor, Xiao Du, alleged that one of the divers tried to pull off his mask and regulator.

Du said he was diving with a friend from a liveaboard at Kuda Rah Thila, a popular site in the South Ari Atoll, on the morning of Oct. 28. He told the Yangtse Evening News the following day that the reef had been particularly crowded that morning, as reported by Divernet.

Du claimed that a man suddenly approached him from below and to the side, pushed him, and made hand gestures. When that diver swam away, his fin allegedly struck Du, who said he used his hand to deflect it.

Du said three divers surrounded him at once

Du alleged that a second man, whom he described as a dive guide, then swam over and grabbed his arm, and that he kicked out to push the man away. The first diver allegedly reached for Du’s face and tried to pull off his mask and regulator, and Du said a third diver then approached and joined the confrontation, pointing at him.

Du said he managed to evade the move and, finding himself surrounded, had to exercise restraint to keep the situation from escalating. He later shared footage of the incident on social media.

After surfacing, Du and his friend confronted the other divers on their boat. Du told them, “You guys tried to grab me, you tried to grab my mouthpiece, you tried to kill me under water. Three people against myself, that’s very rude!” He told the Chinese newspaper that he planned to report the incident to Maldives police.

NBAM said it has “serious concern” about the incident involving diving teams associated with Maldives Legend Liveaboard and Infinity X. It wants any wrongdoing, misconduct, or negligence by any party to be established and addressed under Maldivian law. The association also said the actions of individuals “must not be used to discredit the entire Maldivian boating and diving industry or portray the Maldives as an unsafe diving destination.”

In a statement, the operator of a Maldives Legend liveaboard acknowledged an incident at Kuda Rah Thila involving guests from one of its vessels and a dive guide from the Infinity X liveaboard. Divernet noted that it is unclear whether that description refers to Du or to the man Du described as a dive guide. The company said diving safety is its highest priority.

Maldives Legend said it took statements from its guests and submitted the matter to the relevant authorities for investigation. Attack of the Fanboy could not independently verify the accounts of the other divers involved. The incident comes about five months after four Italian divers died in a cave system in the Vaavu Atoll.