Month: January 2015

High Court frees drug kingpin Shafaz citing insufficient evidence

The High Court has freed ‘drug kingpin’ Ibrahim Shafaz Abdul Razzak today, stating that evidence submitted by the state for trafficking charges was insufficient.

Reversing the Criminal Court’s 18 year jail term and fine of MVR75,000, the High Court questioned the authenticity of documents submitted by the state claiming to prove Shafaz had transferred large amounts of money gained through drug trafficking.

Shafaz was arrested in June 2011 with 896 grams of heroin after the two year long ‘Operation Challenge’. At the time, the Maldives Police Services labeled Shafaz a high profile drug dealer suspected of smuggling and supplying drugs since 2006.

The police claimed Shafaz’s network had smuggled drugs worth MVR1.3 million (US$84,306) to the Maldives between February and April 2011.

In today’s ruling, the High Court noted that the state had failed to provide transaction records to substantiate claims that Shafaz transferred large sums of money to a Sri Lankan national through Western Union and A.G.E Emporium, and that  records from Western Union did not display any official seals or marks.

The court also said the state had failed to provide proof that evidence gathered regarding Shafaz’s money transactions was obtained legally, i.e. through court orders.

Additionally, the court noted that records of money transactions were dated from 2006, but phone call recordings and transcripts between Shafaz and the Sri Lankan national were from 2011, with the result that the relationship between the two pieces of evidence was weak.

Citing Article 24, Article 51, and Article 52 of the Constitution which guarantee the right to privacy including private communications and the rights of the accused, the High Court said any evidence obtained by unlawful means is inadmissible in a court of law.

Corruption charges

The Criminal Court had sentenced Shafaz in November 2013. He was released temporarily for medical treatment in Sri Lanka in February 2014, but failed to return to the Maldives after the allocated three month period. The Sri Lankan police caught Shafaz in Colombo and extradited him to Maldives in May 2014.

Last month, the Anti Corruption Commission (ACC) revealed that six senior government officials conspired to allow Shafaz to leave the country despite no evidence that he required urgent medical care that was not available in the Maldives.

The ACC investigation found that former Deputy Minister of Home Affairs Mohamed Hanim personally paid a visit to a doctor’s home to obtain a signature confirming that Shafaz required urgent medical care abroad. However, the ACC said Shafaz had not consulted a doctor in the week before his release.

Hanim, who is now the deputy minister of environment, also oversaw the illegal preparation of Shafaz’s travel documents and allowed him to leave the country without obtaining formal approval from the Maldives Correctional Service’s (MCS) medical board.

The investigations also revealed former Commissioner of Prisons Moosa Azim had lobbied the medical board to approve Shafaz’s release despite knowing his paperwork was incomplete.

In addition to Hanim and Azim, the ACC has recommended corruption charges be filed against two members of the medical board, a technical officer at Indhira Gandhi Memorial Hospital (IGMH), and a staff member at the MCS.


Related to this story

Police arrest suspected drug kingpin after months of investigations

Convicted drug kingpin Shafa caught in Colombo

Six senior government officials abused power in drug kingpin’s temporary release, says ACC

Likes(0)Dislikes(0)

Opposition condemns Defense Minister Nazim’s apartment raid

The opposition Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) has condemned the police raid on defense minister Colonel (retired) Mohamed Nazim’s apartment in the early hours of Sunday morning (January 18).

In a press statement released yesterday, the party expressed concern over the lack of information made available regarding the raid, noting that a “police raid on a defense minister’s house is not an issue which can be taken lightly”.

Media reports suggested that masked officers forcefully entered the premises in the Galolhu ward of Malé at around 3:30am, searching the apartment of Nazim’s wife and the apartment opposite.

After the President’s Office had expressed its continued confidence in Nazim yesterday, the minister announced via twitter that he was unaffected by the incident.

Meanwhile, former President Mohamed Nasheed has alleged that Nazim’s house was searched in order to confiscate a letter written by Minister of Tourism Ahmed Adeeb to the Department of Immigration and Emigration.

“I have received information that one of the items police was looking for was a letter written by Adeeb when he was temporarily in charge of the ministry when Nazim was on holiday,” said Nasheed before departing to Abu Dhabi to take part in Zaid Future Energy prize last night.

Nasheed said the letter had requested the immigration department allow some individuals to travel to Syria for Jihad, and that Nazim had obtained the documents after arriving back at the ministry.

However, Adeeb told Minivan News today that there was no such letter, saying “all government letters are passed through computerised system”.

“If there was such a letter, it would be impossible to hide it,” he added.

The same day on which Adeeb was appointed as acting defense minister (January 4), reliable sources told Minivan News that Azlif Rauf – a suspect in the murder of MP Dr Afrasheem Ali – left the country for jihad in Syria with six members of Malé’s Kuda Henveiru gang.

Earlier this month, however, the Criminal Court told Minivan News that there were no pending charges against Rauf, and so no reason for immigration to have held his passport.

Police have told Minivan News today that they have no further information to give regarding the raid on Nazim’s apartment.

Elsewhere yesterday, crowds gathered outside Jumhooree Party leader Gasim Ibrahim’s home after rumours of an imminent police raid on his house in Maafannu ward.

“I am not trembling,” Gasim told press gathered outside his home. Flanked by senior MDP members, Gasim said that he was willing to work with anyone who stands to defend the Constitution and that he will stand firm in spite of intimidation.


Related to this story

Police raid Defence Minister Nazim’s home in early hours

“I am not trembling” says Gasim after reports of imminent police raid on his home

Tourism Minister Adeeb temporarily in charge of Defense Ministry

Two immigration officers and Afrasheem murder suspect among group of twelve jihadis

Likes(0)Dislikes(0)

Friends of Rilwan hold event to mark missing journalist’s 29th birthday

Friends and family of missing Minivan News journalist Ahmed Rilwan gathered outside Hulhumalé ferry terminal yesterday to mark his birthday.

Members of the public and supporters of the campaign to find Rilwan wrote messages of support which were attached to a mural created earlier in the five month campaign.

Messages posted on the mural included: ‘We haven’t given up on you yet’, ‘You are missed’, ‘Hoping for your safe return’, ‘Please come back, we need you’, and ‘You are late for work!!!’.

Hulhumalé terminal was the place in which Rilwan was last sighted on CCTV on August 8, shortly before eyewitnesses reported a man fitting his description being pushed into a vehicle outside of his apartment in Hulhumalé.

Rilwan’s mother Aminath Easa, told Minivan News this week that she would would never give up the search for her son, who turned 29-years-old yesterday.

“God willing, I will do everything in my power to find him, with patience, until I die. I will not stop, no matter what anyone says.”

The Maldives Police Service is continuing the search for missing Rilwan as a top priority, without “interruption or boredom”, Commissioner of Police Hussein Waheed told the press earlier this month.

“I assure Rilwan’s family in this opportunity that the police will continue the search without any interruption or boredom. I wish for Rilwan’s safe return,” he said.

“From our investigations so far, there is no evidence to suggest Rilwan is dead. Therefore, our hope is he is still safe and alive,”

Rilwan’s family has asked the Police Integrity Commission to look into potential negligence in the apparently stalled investigation into his disappearance.

Home Minister Umar Naseer has previously acknowledged involvement of gangs in the case, although police have refused to reveal any information to the family regarding potential theories or avenues of inquiry.

“I am not at all happy with the government’s response,” said Aminath. “I know the police are capable, they have solved cases they work on. They caught the two dangerous convicts who escaped from jail, without firing a single shot.”

“They work when their leaders tell them to. But the government hasn’t told them to find my son. The police will look for him and find him if their superiors order them to do so. I believe government officials are complicit in this case.”

For more pictures of yesterday’s event click here


Related to this story

Q&A: “With patience, until I die” – Rilwan’s mother vows to continue the search

No apparent progress in police search for Rilwan, family plans protest for Friday

MDN investigation implicates radicalised gangs in Rilwan’s disappearance

Likes(0)Dislikes(0)

Indian state employees granted travel concessions on trips to Maldives

India’s Ministry of Civil Aviation will provide leave travel concessions (LTC) for state employees travelling to the Maldives, Sri Lanka, Bhutan, and Nepal in an effort to boost regional tourism among SAARC member nations, reports The Financial Express.

State employees will require approval from the ministry in order to utilise the LTC on Air India when flying to the selected countries.

Senior government officials were reported as saying the move is expected to enhance tourism, and subsequently economic development, in the South Asian region.

“There are around two million government employees. With the extension of the LTC scheme there is bound to be greater tourist inflow and outflow with these countries,” an Indian government official is quoted as saying.

Air India currently operates 14 flights to the Maldives per week – between Malé, Trivandrum, and Bangalore – although Indian tourists make up less than four percent of the million-plus visitors to the Indian Ocean archipelago each year.

During the 18th SAARC Summit held in Nepal last November Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi stressed the need for increased regional connectivity noting that “it is still harder to travel within our region than to Bangkok or Singapore, and more expensive to speak to each other”.

The conclusion of the summit saw the signing of the Kathmandu Declaration which called ‘Deeper Integration for Peace and Prosperity’.

Likes(0)Dislikes(0)

Beijing to ‘publicly shame’ unruly Chinese tourists when abroad: Washington Post

“On Friday, Chinese state media reported Beijing was taking new measures to combat a growing problem: the embarrassing behaviour of Chinese tourists when abroad,” reports the Washington Post.

“After a spate of incidents involving Chinese nationals abroad, Li Jinzao, head of China’s National Tourism Administration, was reported to have said that records would be kept of problem tourists, with tourists “ranked” on the severity of their misbehaviour. These tourists would receive messages reminding them to behave when they land at their destination. If they disobeyed, they would be punished.

Li also announced a new tactic to improve tourists’ behaviour: Public shaming. He encouraged Chinese tourists to take photos or video of bad behaviour they spot and pass it on to authorities. The evidence would then be publicised.

Over the past few years, the behaviour of some Chinese citizens when abroad has become a source of ire for the nation. Online, many stories of Chinese tourists showing a lack of civility or behaving selfishly have become viral sensations: There was the Chinese teenager who defaced a 3,500-year-old temple in Egypt, for example, and the group of Chinese tourists who washed their feet at the Louvre in Paris.”

Read more

Likes(1)Dislikes(0)

31-year-old critical after Malé knife attack

A 31-year-old Bangladeshi national has been left in a critical condition after being stabbed in the stomach in Malé last night (January 17), reports media.

The man had been working on the reception desk of the Inama guest house in Malé when the incident occurred.

He was taken to ADK Hospital after the attack, which is said to have occurred at aroung 11:20pm.

The prevalence of knife crime – particularly in the capital Malé – resulted in five deaths in 2014, prompting the government to amend laws covering sharp weapons, reducing the rights of suspects following arrest.

“The most important aims of this administration is to ensure the streets of Malé and the islands are safe. Today, the strongest bill required for this task has been passed,” said President Abdulla Yameen following the amendments to legislation last month.

Source: Haveeru, Raajje.mv

Likes(0)Dislikes(0)

China donates 150 motorcycles to Maldives police

China has donated 150 motorcycles to the Maldives Police Service in order to help improve the force’s operational capacity.

The police website revealed today that the bikes were currently being assembled by police, working alongside Chinese mechanics, after having arrived in the country a few days ago.

An official ceremony for the handing over of the vehicles will be held in the near future.

In addition to contributing over 300,000 tourists to the Maldives every year and pledging assistance in a number of major infrastructure projects, the Chinese government has also given other gifts to the Maldives in recent months.

After handing 200 waste bins and 200,000 LED lights to the Maldivian government last November, China last month gifted cultural items, which included books, ethnic costumes, musical instruments, and Chinese crafts.

Likes(0)Dislikes(0)

Civil Aviation Authority assures all domestic airlines meet international standards

The Maldives Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) has responded to claims that Maldivian based airlines are among the world’s most unsafe.

The authority stated that allegations regarding the safety and maintenance of airlines based in the Maldives are baseless and untrue and that Maldivian civil aviation standards are in line with the best practice set up by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO).

The statement comes in response to the world’s only airline ratings website, www.airlineratings.com, stating that three airlines operating in the Maldives – Maldivian, Trans Maldivian Airways, and Maldivian Air Taxi – failed to reach adequate safety standards.

According to the website, its editorial team had examined the “operational history, incident records and operational excellence” of 449 airlines.

The Maldivian aviation authority has also noted that a technical team from the organisation visited Maldives for its yearly audit of safety features of domestic airlines, finding that domestic airlines operating in Maldives were in line with international standards.

“In this respect, this authority regularly audits all airlines to ensure their safety standards are within ICAO standards and recommended practices”, the statement continued.

Likes(0)Dislikes(0)

“I am not trembling” says Gasim after reports of imminent police raid on his home

Jumhooree Party (JP) leader Gasim Ibrahim has responded to reports his home will be raided by police by saying:  “I am not trembling”.

Speaking to local media outside his residence, Maamigili MP Gasim stated he was willing to work with anyone who stands to defend the Constitution and that despite threats and pressure he will always stand firm.

Gasim – who chaired the Special Majlis which formulated the 2008 Constitution – also stated that he would not stop any state authority from doing its duty, saying that he was currently waiting at Maafannu Villa to facilitate the police force if they are to come.

As crowds gathered outside Gasim’s residence this afternoon awaiting the raid, confusion spread over the existence of a court warrant for the search with police saying there was no truth to the rumours.

Police have, however, confirmed that a warrant had been obtained to search a property in Maafannu early this morning, which they later discovered to belong to the Minister of Defence Mohamed Nazim.

JP spokesman Ahmed Sameer told Minivan News that the party is not aware of the reason Gasim’s residence would be targetted, saying that Gasim has nothing to hide and that he does all his work in a transparent and democratic manner.

“This is political, there is nothing else to this,” Sameer stated.

Minivan News was unable to obtain a response from either the Criminal Court media officials or Gasim himself at the time of publication.

Sameer also said that the government has ordered that a plot of land leased to Gasim’s Villa TV (VTV), in Kaafu Thilafushi, be handed back.

“The rent is being paid as per the agreement but the government is arbitrarily taking over property for political reasons without any regard to constitutional rights and freedoms,” Sameer said.

The JP has accused political enemies of being behind a number of setbacks for Gasim’s business interests last year, as well as death threats he received.

In one instance, the international status of Maamigili airport was removed for less than a month in August as Gasim opposed the government’s flagship SEZ bill in the Majlis. Gasim later reversed his stance on the bill, with the JP issuing a three-line whip in support of the legislation.

Defence minister’s residence raided

In a brief press conference held at Iskandar Koshi this afternoon, Chief Inspector of Police Mohamed Shifan stated that two apartments on the 8th floor of a house were raided under a court warrant at approximately 3.30am this morning.

“When police searched one of the two apartments of the house, police personnel involved in the operation discovered that the house was resided in by Minister of Defence and National Security Colonel (retired) Mohamed Nazim”.

Therefore in light of the discovery, the raid was conducted by giving full consideration and respect to Nazim, police said.

Police also noted that some items needed for the police investigation were confiscated from one of the apartments and that police “applied appropriate force” to enter the house.

Police did not allow journalists to ask any further questions during the press conference.

Haveeru subsequently reported that the police officers who requested the court warrant for Nazim’s residence have been summoned to the court for further clarification on the matter.

Nasheed vows to defend Gasim

Speaking at a Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) rally in the capital Malé last weekend, former president Mohamed Nasheed said that, despite their political differences, he would not allow President Abdulla Yameen to destroy the JP leader Gasim.

“Gasim’s property cannot be looted. Gasim’s character and body cannot be harmed,” he told supporters at the Alimas Carnival ground. “We shall rally in his defense”.

The speech continued a warming of relations between the opposition MDP and Gasim’s JP, which had allied with the Progressive Party of Maldives (PPM) against Nasheed in 2013 to secure the presidency for Yameen.

Indeed, MDP Chairperson Ali Waheed and Vice President Mohamed Shifan flanked Gasim as he spoke to the media outside his home this afternoon.

Following calls from Nasheed to work with the JP in defence of the Constitution last week, the party’s Deputy Leader Ameen Ibrahim expressed gratitude to the MDP leader.

“The JP parliamentary group has decided to do the necessary to defend the Constitution. Very happy that President Nasheed has decided to travel with us in the same boat,” tweeted Ameen.

Recently, the ruling coalition member Maldivian Development Alliance MP Mohamed Ismail proposed an amendment to Article 109 of the Constitution seeking to bar individuals aged 65 years and above from standing for the presidency.

The move would end the presidential ambitions of the JP leader, who will be 66-years-old in 2018.


Related to this story

Police raid Defence Minister Nazim’s home in early hours

Nasheed pledges to defend Gasim from government attacks

Politicians behind death threats to Gasim, claims JP

Likes(0)Dislikes(0)