The Criminal Court has today sentenced two persons for 10 years for kidnapping an 18 year-old boy, reports Haveeru.
The news paper identified the two persons as Ibrahim Haleel, 28, of Henveiru Mehelige, and Mohamed Aiman, 20, of Hudhuveli in Raa Atoll Rasgatheemu.
A total of five people were arrested in connection with the case and presented to court, but due to lack of evidence, the Criminal Court declared the rest were not guilty.
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(0)Swords seized recently by the Maldives Customs Services were imported to the Maldives in a shipment under the name of a company belonging to a “prominent” businessman, according spokesperson of the Maldives Customs Services, Mohamed Ibrahim.
Ibrahim however declined to reveal the name of the person or the company, “as the investigation of the case is ongoing.’’
A shipment of swords and 260 toy guns were intercepted by customs inspectors in July. The inspectors discovered the weapons inside a container imported to the Maldives that was originally loaded in China.
Photos of the guns released by Customs identified them as realistic-looking ‘Airsoft’ guns, which fire small, hard plastic pellets and can be purchased from toy shops in places such as Japan, Taiwan and Hong Kong.
“The toy guns and the swords were both found in two containers imported by one cargo ship,’’ said Ibrahim. “But they were cleared by the customs individually so [the guns] were found on a later occasion.’’
Maldives Customs Services yesterday seized black masks and a high-voltage Chinese-made electric stun gun. Such weapons inflict pain and momentary paralysis when the two probes are applied directly to the target.
“The stun gun was found inside the baggage of a 22 year-old Maldivian who arrived from Colombo on flight UL107. Four black face masks were also found with him,’’ Ibrahim said.
“Another five black masks were found with a 25 year-old Maldivian who arrived with him. They have both now been handed over to police.’’
Aside from their luggage Ibrahim said the two men “looked decent” and appeared generally unremarkable.
Police Sub-Inspector Ahmed Shiyam said the two men remained in police custody but would not give any more details of the case.
(0)Dislikes(1)The parliament last week approved legislation intended to clamp down on gang violence and gang related crime, and sent it to the President for ratification.
The Maldives Police Service has complained on several occasions that violent criminals are released into society because of missing laws on gang violence, and urged MPs to approve the bill.
The law enacted by parliament states says that any person who “unites himself” to a gang formed with the intention to commit unlawful crimes, shall serve on to five years imprisonment.
The approved bill defines a gang as “a group which consists of more than three persons where the main objective is to commit crimes”.
According to the new law, any person identified as the leader of such a gang shall be imprisoned for two to seven years.
By a word a person says or by an act a person commits, or by any means if a person represents that he is a gang member, is now a crime according to the law and punishable with imprisonment for between six to 18 months.
Aiding or supplying a gang is also a crime under the law, with prison sentences up to seven years and fines of up to Rf500,000 (US$39,000).
Furthermore, any person who threatens a witness shall be imprisoned for six to 18 months, and any person who attacks a witness or is the cause of an attack on a witness shall be imprisoned for between three to seven years.
The law also states that planning to assault anybody is now a crime with a sentence of between six to 18 months jail, while actually assault is a sentence of between six to 12 years in jail.
Meanwhile, gang violence continues Male’ with an 18 year-old in intensive care are he was stabbed at 11:45pm last night.
A 16-year-old boy was also stabbed on Thursday night.
The gang crimes bill, submitted in August last year, effectively criminalises gang activities by banning membership and recruiting, and criminalising financial support. It will now be a crime to take over a street corner or paint logos of your gang, while the recently ratified anti-social behaviour bill imposes a curfew of 11:00pm on minors while children under 16 cannot go out without a guardian after 9:00pm.
Police meanwhile insist that their operations are futile as long as sentences remain unenforced.
Following the murder of an 18-year-old in March 2009, the sixth gang-related murder in the capital since December 2007, Commissioner of Police Ahmed Faseeh revealed that “over 500 convicts” were loose in society.
The army had to be deployed in Male’ in April 2008 after 15-year-old Shifau Ismail was killed. Another minor, Ahmed Shaneed, 15, was stabbed to death on the eve of the second round of presidential elections in October 2008.
In December 2008, Samir Abdul Mueen, 23, died after being stabbed multiple times by a group of assailants on motorbikes.
Faseeh argued that the system created repeat offenders when the majority of cases sent for prosecution did not result in convictions.
A young boy first arrested for stealing a bottle of Denim went on to become involved in the biggest case of theft in the capital while his previous cases were pending at the PG’s office, Faseeh revealed.
Another suspect involved in multiple cases of gang violence was arrested for assaulting a police officer, while six cases sent to the PG’s office had not reached court, Faseeh added.
(0)Dislikes(0)Renowned Qary (Quran reciter) Hussein Thaufeeq, widely considered to be one of the best Quran readers in the Maldives, has been arrested on multiple charges of child sex abuse.
Thaufeeq hosts a daily Quran teaching programme on Television Maldives (TVM) for school children every evening after Isha prayers. He also leads Friday prayers and conducts sermons.
Police Sub-Inspector Ahmed Shiyam confirmed Thaufeeq was in police custody after being arrested in connection with “many” child sex offences against girls, “some cases going back a long time.”
‘’The case is under investigation and further information cannot be provided at this stage,’’ said Shiyam.
Police arrested Thaufeeq last week and presented him to the Criminal Court requesting for an extension of his detention. The Court granted an extension of custody to 15 days.
State Islamic Minister Sheikh Mohamed Shaheem Ali Saeed declined to comment on the issue, “as the case is still under investigation.’’
President of the Adhaalath Party Sheikh Hussein Rasheed said that the party was “very concerned” over the issue, “not because a certain person may have done it, but because lately these sorts of crimes are increasing in number day by day,’’ Hussein said.
‘’I would not like to say anything regarding this [specific] case, because it hasn’t been decreed by a court of law and until then it is just an accusation.”
(0)Dislikes(0)The government has confirmed it has commuted the sentences of two of the three convicted terrorists responsible for the 2007 bombing of Sultans Park in Male’, under the Clemency Act.
Press Secretary for the President Mohamed Zuhair said the pair, identified by local media as Ahmed Naseer and Mohamed Sobah, were “not granted clemency, but had their sentences decreased.”
The two men had their sentences changed from incarceration to three year suspended sentences under observation.
”Their punishment was delayed by the lawful offering of a suspended punishment,” said Zuhair, indicating that “they will be well observed.”
Naseer and Sobah were convicted for 15 years on charges of terrorism, ”but they were not the people who were in charge of doing this, they did not having the highest involvement,” Zuhair said.
He added that the government wished to “provide an opportunity for everyone to be involved in the society, and the opportunity to rehabilitate and recover.”
The bomb attack near the Sultan Park was the first such incident to occur in the Maldives and received widespread publicity around the globe, damaging the tourism industry.
The incident occurred on September 29 2007 in Sultans Park, near the Islamic Centre.
The homemade bomb, which consisted of a gas cylinder, a washing machine motor and a mobile phone, injured 12 foreign tourists several seriously.
The tourists hurt included eight from China, two from Britain, and two from Japan.
10 Maldivians and two foreigners were arrested in connection with the case, and in December that year three men confessed in court and were sentenced to 15 years prison.
(0)Dislikes(0)A 17 year-old boy was stabbed by a group of people near a garage in the Galolhu district of Male’ late yesterday afternoon, before sunset.
According to Police Sub-inspector Ahmed Shiyam the boy was stabbed twice, in the arm and shoulders, and was treated at Indira Gandi Memorial Hospital (IGMH).
”Due to a rise in gang activity yesterday Maldives Police Services launched a special operation to check people and several areas,” Shiyam said. ”Police were seeking weapons and objects that could potentially be used as weapons.”
Recently another 17 year-old boy was stabbed to death by a group of men during an apparent gang fight.
The boy was stabbed in the leg as he was climbing onto a truck near the Social Centre in Maafannu, and bled to death despite undergoing transfusions at IGMH.
Police statistics for the first six days of Ramadan reveal that 225 criminal cases were recorded. There were 23 cases of assault, 61 cases of theft, three robberies, 22 drug-related cases, one sexual offence, 39 traffic-related cases, three cases of domestic violence, 21 cases of forgery, nine cases of vandalism, three cases of bounced cheques, four cases of embezzlement, 20 cases of lost items and 36 in the category ‘other’.
Comparative statistics between the number of crimes committed in the first three days of Ramadan this year and last year show that a decrease in crime rate in the first three days of Ramadan.
(0)Dislikes(0)A group of people have destroyed the door of the head office belonging to minor opposition Dhivehi Qaumee Party (DQP) in an apparent attempt to break in, reported the DQP on its official website.
The website reported that it was the third attack such on the DQP headoffice, and that the party had reported the matter to concerned authorities, however the authorities were yet unable to determine the attackers.
Last time the attackers broke into the office, damaged property and fled with some of the documents and office equipment, the party said.
(0)Dislikes(0)The economy is controlled by a handful of big, powerful dons who have extensive business interests in all major industries. The dons supplement their income through the illicit supply of drugs, prostitutes and other contraband. They have corrupted the institutions of state through bribery and inducements, and their violent street gangs deal with anyone who dares stand in their way.
Sound familiar? Welcome to ‘Sin City’: Las Vegas in the 1960s.
The parallels between post-war Las Vegas and today’s Maldives are stark. We may not have the casinos of the Nevada desert town but we have plenty of our own vices: street gangs, people smugglers and the king of crime: Brown Sugar.
In recent weeks, it has become clear that many of our own state institutions have also been corrupted by powerful businessmen who made their illicit fortunes under Gayoom’s iron-fisted autocracy.
For ordinary folk, Gayoom’s reign often spelled poverty, misery and torture but for a cunning few, close to the dictator. Vast personal fortunes could be made through lucrative oil contracts, drug dealing and racketeering. The friends and family of the former President were effectively above the law.
Things started to go wrong for the dons, though, in 2008, when a new sheriff rode into town. President Nasheed vowed to clean up corruption and cronyism and sell off rotten state assets to private corporations, threatening the dons’ control over the economy.
The criminal king-pins are fighting back. Secret telephone recordings, aired in the media earlier this month, strongly suggest that a handful of powerful MPs, who made their fortunes under Gayoom, have woven a web of corruption around the People’s Majlis and the so-called independent Commissions in order to protect their vast personal wealth.
The police have arrested MPs Ahmed Nazim, Abdulla Yameen and Gasim Ibrahim for allegedly bribing fellow MPs, such as Kutti ‘I need some cash’ Nasheed, to vote against government bills that threaten the dons’ interests. Now the judges, who were appointed by and owe their loyalties to Gayoom, have freed the powerful MPs and barred police lawyers from court.
President Nasheed is engaged in a bitter fight to try and clean up corruption and stamp out organised crime but has few allies outside his own party.
Las Vegas’ history may, though, provide him with hope. In the 1980s, huge corporations moved into town. They bought up the mobster’s gambling dens and replaced them with glittering skyscraper mega-casinos.
The Las Vegas mafia fought tooth a nail to protect their empires – corrupting policemen, bribing judges and murdering opponents to keep the corporations out. They spun a propaganda war, warning that Las Vegas would lose its ‘soul’ if faceless companies took over.
But in the end, the corporations won. Today’s Las Vegas is hardly a testament to moral purity. But the gangsters have been forced out of town and the corruption, drug dealing and the criminal gangs have largely gone with them.
Whether the Maldives’ will win its fight against the mafia remains to be seen. The $400 million upgrade of Male’ International Airport by GMR & Malaysia Airports bodes well – not only will it boost the economy, it will also stamp out a dodgy airline fuel racket allegedly run by companies close to powerful MPs.
The future of the country, and its democracy, hangs in the balance. Will the mafia win out? Or will President Nasheed finally force them into leaving Las Vegas?
All comment pieces are the sole view of the author and do not reflect the editorial policy of Minivan News. If you would like to write an opinion piece, please send proposals to [email protected]
(0)Dislikes(0)Police and the Maldives National Defense Force (MNDF) arrested almost 60 people, including children, in a joint special operation launched on July 15.
A police media official confirmed that on July 15 five people were arrested, four more the next day, 14 on July 19 and 33 people yesterday from different areas of the capital Male’.
He also said that two stabbings occurred in Male’ the day before yesterday.
“One of the victims was is admitted to Indira Gandi Memorial Hospital (IGMH) with a serious condition, but the other person’s condition was not so serious,” the media official said. “Ss he is still undergoing treatment, we cannot provide further details of the injuries.”
Reports of Police-MNDF mistreatment
Many of those who were arrested last night in the special operations claimed that the police and MNDF officers mistreated and abused their rights during their arrest and detention.
“I was arrested yesterday afternoon at 5:00pm while I was on the way to Dharumavantha Scool to get a document,” one of those arrested told Minivan News. “While I was waiting near the traffic lights on Sosun magu, two policemen and two MNDF officers told me to be freeze, came up behind me and handcuffed me and my friend,” said the 19 year-old, who was released this afternoon.
“I asked them on what charges they were arresting me, and where they were taking me, and they said they needed me to clarify some information.”
He said the officers pushed him into a police bus and blindfolded him with his hands tied with clips.
“They took me to a place and removed my silver ear-rings, my bracelets, necklace and sunglasses,” he claimed. “Then they took me to a place and removed the blindfold on my eye, and ordered me to remove my clothes. I refused, but I had no other choice so I did, and they told me to bend over. They harassed me verbally and physically.”
He said the officers were covering their faces.
“After checking me they blindfolded me again, and then took me to somewhere else. I asked them where they were taking me, they said that I should speak only when I am spoken to,” he said. “They pushed me into another room, where they trimmed my hair. When I tried to refuse, they hit beat me.”
He said that the price of his jewelry confiscated by police and MNDF was “not less” than Rf2000.
“They said anything collected would not be returned,” he said.
He also claimed that another boy’s necklace was also taken, which he claimed was a memorial to his dead mother and begged the police officers to give it back when he was released. But the officers replied “’You have to send a letter to us requesting the necklace. You might get it then’,” he claimed.
A 14 year-old boy who was arrested yesterday at 5:00pm near Giyasudeen School claimed that police treated him the same.
“They arrested me when I came out from the stadium after playing football. They told me that they needed to arrest me, and when I asked them why I was being arrested they said I was on some kind of list and that their superiors had ordered them to arrest me,” said the 14 year-old. “Then they shackled my legs and arms and blindfolded me. I was shocked – it was the first time anything of this kind has happened to me.”
The boy said he was kept blindfolded for a long time somewhere, and when he requested food it was denied.
“I asked them to provide at least some water, and they said people like us did not deserve to drink water. They removed my necklace, all my rings, and my mobile phone.”
He said the officers did not give any of his possession back when he was released this afternoon.
“It was a silver necklace, it cost Rf1300. They did not even give my mobile phone back,” he added.
“They took me into a small room and removed the blindfold, and took up a trimmer. I asked them why they had to cut my hair, and they said they were getting me into the religion of Islam. I refused them permission to cut my hair, and I looked at the ground I saw blood all over the floor,” he said. “They started beating me when I refused.”
Another 16 year-old boy who was arrested near Ahmadiyya school and was released this morning claimed that he was also mistreated yesterday.
“They said I was taken on an order from their superiors,” he said. “They threw me in to the police bus. I told them I have a big wound in the back.”
He said the officers took him blindfolded and handcuffed.
“They took me somewhere, and told me to sit down,” he said. “I checked with my hands to make sure there was a chair, and when I touched the chair when I turned to sit down they pulled the chair away. Again they hurt my wound and I told them that it hurt.”
He said the officers asked him to show them his wound, and when he removed his shirt they started hitting the wound and asking whether it hurt.
“They used filthy words to speak to us and treated us really badly,” he added.
A police media official said that some of those arrested had their hair trimmed because they had changed their appearance to one different from the photos police used to identify them.
He denied that police and MNDF had tortured those taken into custody.
The mother of one of the boys told Minivan News that police had taken her son in a raid on Heniveru Youth Centre.
“He is very lazy and is addicted to computer games, and spends most of his time at home or in the gaming centre there,” she said.
“He never gets involved in delinquent or criminal activities. The MNDF/police clipped his hands while he was ordering food at the cafeteria and took him in a vehicle to Kalhuthukkala koshi (police station) where he was blindfolded, handcuffed, stripped, and checked. He was released around 2:00am after his picture and fingerprints were taken and he signed the police records.”
The boy’s mother said the police documentation on his release said he had “been detained in relation to criminal activities by street groups and was to see if he had anything illegal. The reason for their detention was to check if he possessed ‘anything’,” she said.
“There must have been a lot of innocent boys there among the 60-odd youths in the police yard. My son said he felt like a terrorist when the police took his clothes off and made him bend down Guantanamo Bay style. He said he wished he had done something to deserved such harassment.”
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