Suspects in murder of alleged sorcerer deny charges

Two people suspected of murdering 76 year-old alleged sorcerer Ali Hassan, of Kudahuvadhoo in Dhaalu Atoll, have denied murder charges in court today.

Local newspaper ‘Haveeru’ reported that the hearing for Fauzan Mohamed and Ibrahim Majidh was held today in the Criminal Court.

The lawyer from the Prosecutor General’s Office told the court that Fauzan and Ibrahim, along with a group of other people, had planned to kill Ali Hassan and attacked him around 7:00pm on the evening of January 8, the paper reported.

When the judge queried both individually, Fauzan told the judge that he denied the charges and said he wished to appoint a lawyer, and also requested the court to conclude the case soon. Ibrahim also denied the charges.

Ibrahim Waseem, the step-grandson of Ali Hassan, has previously confessed to being an accessory to murder.

Kudahuvadhoo resident Ibrahim Waseem contradicted a previous statement provided to authorities by claiming today that he had sought revenge against Ali Hassan – the defendant’s step-grandfather.  Waseem claimed he has been seeking revenge after hearing allegations that Hassan was responsible for the murder of his mother using sorcery.

In March, two minors were arrested and charged with the murder of Ali Hassan, pleaded guilty to accessory in court.

The two 16 year-olds were charged with spying on Hassan before the murder, and assisting the assailants to hide the weapons they used to murder Hassan.

Another 17 year old boy was also summoned to court in connection with the case, and charged for involvement in murdering Hassan.

He requested the court that he wished to continue the trial with a lawyer, which was granted.

The step-grandson of Hassan was also summoned to the Criminal Court for his involvement in the case.

He told the court that Hassan was murdered because he was informed that Hassan had killed the mother of Fauzan Mohamed

The victim himself had previously been accused by the islanders of using sorcery on a 37 year-old woman, who was reported missing at 2:00am on December 4, 2011, and whose body was found floating in Kudahuvadhoo lagoon later that morning.

Likes(0)Dislikes(0)