Tag: child molestation

Fornicating couple sentenced to 18 months jail, 25 lashes for self-made sex video

The Criminal Court has sentenced two consenting adults to 18 months in jail and 25 lashes for videoing themselves engaging in extramarital sex.

Aseel Ismail and Mariyam Sana were arrested in April 2011 after a police raid found CDs and photos in which the couple appear to engage in extramarital sex.

Aseel is currently serving a seven year jail term for assault and Sana is facing trial for drug abuse and alcohol consumption.

The Criminal Court on Wednesday sentenced the two to six months in jail and 25 lashes for fornication and issued an additional one-year jail term for producing pornographic material.

Meanwhile, renowned Quran reciter Hussain Thaufeeq has been sentenced to six months banishment and 15 lashes for sexually abusing children. However the Criminal Court suspended the sentence for three years, on the grounds it was the Qari’s first offence.

Thaufeeq was arrested in August 2010 on multiple charges of child sexual molestation with “some cases going a long time back,” police said at the time.

Thaufeeq’s students had also submitted a petition to the Human Rights Commission of the Maldives (HRCM) asking the commission to investigate the matter

Thaufeeq hosted a daily Quran teaching program on Television Maldives (TVM) for school children every evening after Isha prayers. He also led Friday prayers and conducted sermons.

He is also being charged with possession of pornographic material. The trial is still pending at the Criminal Court.

Under the Child Sex Offenders (Special Provisions) Act of 2009, the penalty for child sex abuse is 10-14 years but can be extended to 15-18 years if the accused was in a position of trust with the children he allegedly abused.

However, it appears Thaufeeq has been charged under a different regulation criminalising fornication and sexual misconduct.

The Criminal Court was not responding to calls at the time of press.

In August this year, a 15-year-old girl who faced 100 lashes after she was raped by her stepfather had her sentence overturned following an international campaign.

The Juvenile Court in September sentenced a 17 year old boy to four months in prison after he kissed a 16 year old girl in a court waiting room. The girl was sentenced to four months house arrest.

Meanwhile, a series of sex tapes in which Supreme Court Judge Ali Hameed appears to be having sex with several unidentified foreign women were leaked in July, but the judicial oversight body voted not to take any disciplinary action citing lack of evidence. The Judicial Services Commission (JSC) continues with the investigation.

According to a 2007 UN study, one in three women in the Maldives experience physical and /or sexual violence at some point in their lives. Further, one in eight women reported they had experienced childhood sexual abuse, the study said.

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Criminal Court releases MP Adil from house arrest

The Criminal Court released Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) MP Hassan Adil from house arrest on Monday.

Police Sub-Inspector Ahmed Shiyam confirmed that Adil was released by the Criminal Court under conditions.

The Criminal Court issued a warrant for the arrest of Adil in April, following allegations of child molestation. His detention was subsequently extended, and then later reduced to house arrest.

On June 12, the Criminal Court granted the Prosecutor General (PG) permission to hold MP Hassan Adil in house arrest until his trial reaches conclusion.

The court has said that permission was granted upon a request made by the PG’s office today during the first hearing of the trial.

Police have alleged that Adil sexually abused a 13 year-old girl belonging to a family with whom he was close friends.

The Criminal Court said the court warrant to hold Adil under detention until the trial end was issued according to article 28 of Child Sex Offenders Special Provisions Act.

Article 73[c] of the constitution states that a member of the parliament will be disqualified if found guilty of a criminal offence that involves a prison sentence of more than twelve months.

Formerly an MP of the opposition-aligned Dhivehi Qaumee Party (DQP), Adhil crossed the floor and joined the MDP in September last year.

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Court extends MP Adil’s detention

The Criminal Court has extended the detention of MDP MP for Maradhoo Hassan Adil a second time following his arrest for allegations of child abuse on April 4.

The Court extended Adil’s detention by 15 days for the second time, after police and the Human Rights Commission of the Maldives (HRCM) launched a joint investigation into the case.

Adil was formerly a member of the opposition-aligned Dhivehi Qaumee Party (DQP), before jumping to the ruling MDP in September last year.

MDP Chairperson Mariya Ahmed Didi has previously told Minivan News that if Adhil was found guilty “then of course the party should [take action]. The party does not condone such acts. But we should only speculate after the court has come to a verdict.”

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Criminal Court extends detention of MP Adil to 15 days

The Criminal Court last night extended the detention of Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) MP for Maradhoo Area Hassan Adhil to 15 days, following his arrest yesterday on charges of child molestation.

The Criminal Court asked police to hold Adhil in detention at a location determined by the Home Ministry, after a closed hearing to which journalists were denied access.

Police Sub-Inspector Ahmed Shiyam confirmed that Adhil’s detention was extended and that the MP was in police custody.

Yesterday morning an arrest warrant was issued by the Criminal Court for the arrest of the former opposition-aligned Dhivehi Qaumee Party (DQP) MP, who jumped to the ruling MDP in September last year.

Following the signing, Adhil claimed he had switched parties “not by anyone, I took this step because of the pulse of the people.”

”I believe that the government is conducting many development projects at a high speed, and I signed with MDP for the development of my area at the request of [my constituents].”

Leader of the DQP Hassan Saeed declined to comment on Adhil’s decision at the time.

Report of the investigation of the MP appeared in newspaper Haveeru last month, which based the story on a source within the Human Rights Commission of the Maldives (HRCM). However HCRM President Maryam Azra denied knowledge of the investigation and the story was removed from Haveeru’s website.

MDP Chairperson Mariya Ahmed Didi told Minivan News yesterday that if Adhil was found guilty “then of course the party should [take action]. The party does not condone such acts. But we should only speculate after the court has come to a verdict.”

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Court warrant issued for arrest of MDP MP Adil on child molestation charges

The Criminal Court has today issued a court warrant for the arrest of Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) MP Hassan Adil.

A police spokesperson confirmed that court warrant was issued and for charges of child molestation, but declined to provide further information.

When asked about Adil’s future in the party should he be found guilty, MDP Chairperson Mariya Ahmed Didi told Minivan News that if Adil was found guilty “then of course the party should [take action]. The party does not condone such acts. But we should only speculate after the court has come to a verdict.”

She referred Minivan News to Parliamentary Group Leader ‘Reeko’ Moosa Manik, however his phone was switched off at time of press. MDP Parliamentary group’s former spokesperson MP Ahmed Shifaz said that he had heard about the incident but declined to comment on the matter.

Last month local newspaper Haveeru published an article reporting that police and the Human Rights Commission of the Maldives (HRCM) were conducting a joint investigation regarding child molestation allegations against a MP, which was later removed from the newspaper’s website.

HRCM President Maryam Azra told Minivan News at the time that she did not know whether the commission was investigating the case.

”We are trying to find out who it was that has told Haveeru so,” she said at the time.

Azra did not respond to Minivan News today at time of press.

Dhivehi Rayyithunge Party (DRP) MP Ahmed Nihan said he had no information on the issue.

Over the past year there has been an increase in reports of child abuse, including by high-profile individuals in the Maldives. Prominent Quran reciter Hussein Thaufeeq, who appears every day on TV and teaches Quran to children, was recently arrested on numerous child molestation charges.

Adil, a former member of the opposition-aligned Dhivehi Qaumee Party (DQP), did not appear in parliament today.

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