Ex-defence minister “plotted to attack” president, police chief, tourism minister

Former Defence Minister Mohamed Nazim plotted to attack President Abdulla Yameen, state prosecutors have claimed.

Revealing confidential plans in a pen drive allegedly confiscated along with a pistol and three bullets from Nazim’s home on January 18, state prosecutors said the retired colonel had also planned to attack Commissioner of Police Hussein Waheed and Tourism Minister Ahmed Adeeb.

The Prosecutor General’s (PG) Office had previously submitted the plans as confidential documents in a weapons smuggling charge against Nazim.

The plans demonstrated Nazim had the “motive and character” to use the pistol and bullets, state prosecutor Adam Arif told the Criminal Court today.

Nazim’s lawyer Maumoon Hameed maintains rogue police officers planted the weapons at the former defence minister’s apartment in a conspiracy engineered by Tourism Minister Adeeb.

Defence lawyers today named President Yameen, Commissioner Waheed, Chief of Defence Forces Major General Ahmed Shiyam, Home Minister Umar Naseer and several senior ranking police and military officers as witnesses.

The Criminal Court adjourned today’s hearing stating the court would decide whether to summon defence witnesses only if they appear to negate the prosecution’s evidence.

Pen drive

 

Following the January 18 weapons find, Nazim was dismissed from his ministerial post. Two weeks later, on February 10, he was arrested on additional charges of terrorism and treason. At the time, the police accused Nazim of plotting a coup and planning to harm senior government officials.

On February 24, at the first hearing of the trial on weapons possession, Arif revealed Nazim’s alleged plot to harm officials was to be financed by Jumhooree Party (JP) Leader Gasim Ibrahim’s Villa Group.

The documents were to be kept confidential, but Arif today revealed further details, alleging a man named Riyaz was also involved in financing Nazim’s alleged plans.

Another individual identified as FA was to secure international assistance from Singapore, Malaysia and Bangkok, while another identified as “Bodu Boalha” [Big Ball] was to import weapons into the country, Arif said.

The documents also contained an escape plan, and listed the state wholesaler State Trading Organisation (STO) as an additional resource.

Nazim’s brother Adam Azim had been STO’s Managing Director up until his dismissal on Tuesday.

The state prosecutor also said the documents revealed that Nazim had engineered December’s water crisis in Malé when a fire at the water plant had left over 150,000 people in the capital without water for two weeks.

Nazim had also attempted to influence three Majlis votes, the prosecution said, which included the no-confidence vote against former Health Minister Dr Mariyam Shakeela, the vote to appoint a new Prosecutor General, and the vote to reduce the Supreme Court bench.

Defence witnesses

 

Nazim has named President Yameen as a witness in order to prove Home Minister Naseer had notified the president of Adeeb’s alleged threat to “destroy” Nazim, defence lawyers said.

On March 7, Hameed claimed Adeeb framed Nazim after the former defence minister alerted Yameen of the tourism minister using SO SWAT officers to commit criminal acts, including the chopping down of all of Malé City’s Areca palms in October last year.

Defence lawyers have also called Superintendent of Police Ahmed Nafiz and former head of police’s intelligence directorate Mohamed ‘MC’ Hameed to prove a complaint was lodged over SO officer’s alleged criminal activities, and that SO officers had engaged in criminal activity.

The defence has also called senior ranking police and military officers to prove:

  • a Special Protection Group Corporal had lost a 9mm Browning pistol at Shangri-La resort in 2014
  • weapons are routinely imported into the Maldives illegally and used illegally
  • police officers did not follow due process in raiding and searching Nazim’s residence
  • police intelligence had not received any information that illegal weapons were smuggled into Malé prior to the raid

The tourism minister has previously said he was “shocked” by the allegations, and dismissed them as lies.


Related to this story

Adeeb framed Nazim after fallout over Malé City’s Areca palms, lawyers claim

Nazim accused of conspiring with Villa group to harm state officials

Ex defense minister’s wife charged with illegal weapons possession

Nazim remains in custody as High Court rejects appeal

Former Defence Minister Nazim remanded for 15 days

Police deny framing Nazim as former Commissioner alleges politicisation

No forensic evidence against Nazim, says legal team

Police raid Defence Minister Nazim’s home in early hours

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3 thoughts on “Ex-defence minister “plotted to attack” president, police chief, tourism minister”

  1. Smacks of the OK corral - or mafia cartels outdoing each other in an attempt to play Godfather. Nasheed apart, the rest are pawns on the Gayoom chessboard. Setting up people against each other, that's always been your game. Use and discard at will. Pity that some people have such short memories. Today's Nazim could be tomorrow's Adeeb, as they say the higher your rise, the more you have to fall. You mafiosi are a shame on our beautiful country. All in the name of greed (power, money whatever) but please, not in the name of our nation. You are raping, pillaging and destroying what was once a dignified nation. Destruction will ultimately lead to self- destruction. Its as clear as day.

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  2. This is surprising.

    High Commissioner of Maldives to Malaysia is often called by a nick name "FA"

    "Bodu Boalha" is a nick name associated with Maj.Naseem from MNDF.

    Of Course there could be others with the same nick names.

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  3. "The state prosecutor also said the documents revealed that Nazim had engineered December’s water crisis in Malé when a fire at the water plant had left over 150,000 people in the capital without water for two weeks."

    hahahaha! What? This "little" detail gets slipped in there too! Gayoom's band of thieves have no shame at all. They might as well throw the water crisis in the pot as well, why not.

    According to government sources, other information found Nazim's pen drive proves he is also guilty of:

    -impregnating the 15 year old fornication/flogging girl
    -placing cursed coconuts near schools
    -safari boats throwing rubbish bags into the sea
    -importing all undocumented workers
    -creating terrible customer service at Bank of Maldives (and every other business in Maldives)
    -Male' street flooding
    -USD shortage
    -creating conditions that allow climate change
    -assassinating JFK
    -the disappearance of MH370

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