Police to assist with Maafushi Prison security after jail break

Maldives Police Service (MPS) is to assist Maldives Correctional Service (MCS) in strengthening Maafushi Prison security of after two convicts serving life sentences for murder escaped from the prison on Friday night (October 17).

A police media statement said a police team will be stationed on Maafushi Island to assist MCS on a need to basis and that the two institutions are currently taking measures to strengthen security.

The police declined to reveal details of how many police officers are to be stationed on the island or what kind of security measures are to be taken.

Fariyash Ahmed of Gaafu Alifu Maamendhoo and Ibrahim Shahum Adam of Malé escaped from Maafushi Prison after sawing off metal bars in a ventilation shaft.

Minister of Home Affairs Umar Naseer accepted that loopholes in the prison system had allowed the two prisoners to escape, but said he was confident the police would recapture the convicts and bring them to justice.

“There is no prison in the world from which someone or the other has not escaped from. The strength of a prison system is in how quickly we recapture escapees and return them to their cells,” said the home minister.

On Saturday (October 18) Umar Naseer tweeted that the prison escape is an opportunity to identify loop holes in the prison system and to improve the system.

“Every prison escape is an opportunity for Prison Officers to identify the loop holes and improve the system while we hunt them down,” read the tweet.

Meanwhile, in a statement released on Sunday (October 19) MPS called upon the public be extra vigilant as the search for the two ‘dangerous’ convicts continue with the aid of Maldives National Defense Force and the Coast Guard.

Police also urged the public to submit any information they may have about the escapees to the following numbers:  3322111 or 9911099. The police have also pledged to take legal action against individuals who withhold information on the whereabouts of the Shahum and Fariyash.