Tag: Maldives police services

Home Minister appeals arrest warrant

Home Minister Umar Naseer has appealed a Criminal Court arrest warrant at the High Court today.

The arrest warrant issued on Thursday orders the Maldives Police Services to arrest Naseer and present him at the Criminal Court at 11:00am on Tuesday (June 17), a High Court official said.

Naseer – currently in the Netherlands on an official visit – has failed to attend three consecutive hearings at the Criminal Court to answer charges of disobedience to order.

The Home Minister was abroad during all three hearings.

Home Ministry’s Media Coordinator Thazmeel Abdul Samad told Minivan News on Saturday that Naseer is not a fugitive from justice and will attend hearings willingly once he returns from the Netherlands on June 16.

The Maldives Police Services has acted differently in different arrest warrant cases.

The police arrested former President Mohamed Nasheed in 2012, and former MPs Abdulla Jabir and Hamid Abdul Ghafoor on the Criminal Court’s orders in 2013. But when the court ordered MP Ahmed ‘Sun Travel’ Shiyam be arrested in March, the police asked him to present himself at the police headquarters on the day in question and escorted him from the police station to the court.

The police have refused to comment on the arrest warrant.

Naseer was appointed as Home Minister on a cabinet slot allocated for the Jumhooree Party (JP) as part of the now defunct coalition agreement signed with the ruling Progressive Party of the Maldives (PPM).

Two of the four ministers appointed on JP slots have switched to the PPM and its ally Maldivian Development Alliance (MDA) following the dissolution of the coalition.

Naseer joined the JP in 2013 after losing the PPM’s presidential primary to incumbent President Abdulla Yameen.

The PPM expelled Naseer from the party after he alleged the primaries were rigged and accused Yameen of illicit connections with gangs and the illegal drug trade and vowed to bring a “white revolution” within the party.

Speaking to Minivan News in January Naseer said his earlier comments were “political rhetoric.”

In March, Naseer announced he will run for the presidency in 2023 but pledged to back Yameen for re-election in 2018.

“I am not a political threat to President Yameen. I am ready to work to help President Yameen get re-elected to presidency in 2018. What I may have said before, and the competition that existed between us before is a completely different matter. That has come to an end,” he said in an interview on state broadcaster Television Maldives’ Friday variety show ‘Heyyambo.’

Naseer is accused of calling for 2,000 volunteers on January 23, 2012 to storm the Maldives National Defence Force (MNDF) headquarters with 50 ladders during the two weeks of protests sparked by the military’s controversial detention of Criminal Court Chief Judge Abdulla Mohamed.

On the night in question, Umar told anti-government demonstrators in front of the Maldives Monetary Authority building that they should use tactics to tire out the soldiers on duty before climbing into the military barracks, at which point “the people inside will be with us.”

“From today onward, we will turn this protest into one that achieves results,” Naseer had said.

“We know how people overthrow governments. Everything needed to topple the government of this country is now complete.”

After he was questioned by the police in September 2012, Naseer told the press that “there will be no evidence” to prove he committed a criminal offence.

“In my statement I did not mention where to place the ladders or where to climb in using the ladders,” Naseer had said.

If convicted, Naseer faces banishment, imprisonment or house arrest not exceeding six months or a fine not exceeding MVR150 (US$ 10) under Article 88(a) of the penal code.

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Castaway Maldives sues Police Welfare Corporation

Castaway Maldives Pvt Ltd has lodged a complaint at the Civil Court over the Police Welfare Corporation’s decision to annul a resort development bid.

The company won a bid to develop a resort on an island owned by the Police Welfare Corporation on November 14, 2013. However, before a sub-lease agreement could be signed, the police unilaterally annulled the bid on May 14.

The company, in a complaint filed yesterday, asked the Civil Court to issue an injunction preventing the corporation from proceeding with new plans for Lhaviyani atoll Maabinhuraa Island.

The tourism company has also asked the court to order the police to sign a sub-lease agreement with the company.

Castaway Maldives said the police had justified its decision, citing delays to signing the sub-lease agreement. But the company claimed it was the police’s failure to complete negotiations over the agreement that had delayed the process.

A police media official today refused to comment on the matter.

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Police suspend investigations into Supreme Court judge’s sex scandal

The Maldives Police Service has suspended investigations into Supreme Court Judge Ali Hameed’s alleged appearance in a series of sex tapes.

“We have filed the Ali Hameed case. We do not have enough evidence to proceed further and it will only be opened again if we receive additional information,” a police media official told Minivan News today.

In December, Superintendent Abdulla Nawaz told the press the police had been unable to determine if the man seen fornicating with three different foreign women was Ali Hameed. The incident reportedly occurred in a hotel room in Colombo.

Nawaz at the time pledged to continue with the investigations with assistance from a foreign country. The police press conference followed local media reports that the investigations had stalled due to the Criminal Court’s failure to provide a warrant to take a facial photograph of the judge and a separate warrant to search his residence.

The judicial oversight body Judicial Services Commission (JSC) has meanwhile failed to take any action on the matter despite repeated recommendations by two subcommittees to suspend the judge for failure to cooperate with investigations.

The sex tapes first surfaced in May 2013 shortly after a film – also involving Hameed – began circulating on social media in which the judge appeared to be discussing political influence in the judiciary with a local businessman.

JSC member Shuaib Abdul Rahman and former member MP Ahmed Hamza have accused JSC President and Supreme Court Judge Adam Mohamed of stalling the commission’s investigation into the scandal.

Meanwhile, the Prosecutor General (PG) has pressed corruption charges against Hameed over the illegal transfer of US$144 worth credit from his state-funded mobile phone in 2010.

But the Criminal Court has said case documents were destroyed in a coffee spill and has asked the PG’s Office to submit files again.

The auditor general discovered the offense in a 2010 audit of the Department of Judicial Administration and the case was subsequently investigated by the Anti Corruption Commission (ACC).

The audit also discovered that MVR13,200 (US$856) was spent out of the apex court’s budget to repair a state-owned car used by an unnamed Supreme Court Justice, later revealed in the media to be Justice Hameed.

According to the police report cited by auditors, the driver of the justice’s car was responsible for the accident, which occurred on January 23, 2011.

However, the official driver insisted the car was undamaged when he parked and left it the previous night.

Despite the findings of the audit report, in March 2011 the Supreme Court dismissed allegations of corruption reported in local media regarding phone allowances and use of court funds to repair Justice Hameed’s car.

Moreover, in September 2011, the ACC began investigating allegations that over MVR50,000 (US$3,200) of state funds was spent on plane tickets for Justice Hameed’s official visit to China in December 2010.

The complainant alleged that Hameed also visited Sri Lanka and Malaysia, both before and after his trip to China to attend a conference by the International Council of Jurists.

A return ticket on a direct flight from Malé to Beijing at time cost MVR16,686 (US$1,080).

Furthermore, in May 2012, the ACC revealed that Justice Hameed was among three sitting judges illegally occupying state-owned apartments.

The Maldives Bar Association in April has said Hameed’s continued presence on the Supreme Court bench contravenes Islamic Shariah and the norms of justice.

“Given the serious nature of the allegations against Ali Hameed, that the judge continues to hold trial contravenes norms of justice, conduct of judges, and established norms by which free and democratic societies deal with cases of this nature,” the organization said.

Chief Justice Ahmed Faiz Hussain has refused to comment on the issue, stating in January: “We are speaking about accusations. The Chief Justice will comment on the matter when relevant authorities decide on the nature of the accusations. How many other’s have also faced accusations?”

Images and symbols depicting scenes from the sex-tape formed a prominent part of protests against the court’s repeated interference in the presidential election of 2013.

Hameed was one of the four judges who formed the majority in the Supreme Court’s decision to annul the initial first round of the 2013 presidential election, the ruling that unseated two opposition MPs over a controversial case of decreed debt, and the ruling that removed Elections Commission President and Vice President for alleged contempt of court.

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Police complete first response to terrorism incidents training

The Maldives Police Services has completed a three-day training on first responses to terrorism this morning.

The programme held in partnership with the US State Department’s Bureau of Diplomatic Security trained 71 police officers.

A Sri Lankan counter-terrorism analyst told Indian Media last week that Maldives is a target of regional terrorists.

Rohan Gunaratna who heads the International Center for Political Violence and Terrorism Research (ICPVTR) at Singapore’s Nanyang Technological University said a Sri Lankan national arrested in Chennai on suspicion on terrorist activities had been planning to launch attacks on locations in the Maldives, Sri Lanka and India.

Meanwhile, The Maldives government has said funds are being raised in the country to support terrorism abroad, a recent US State Department country report on terrorism said.

The report also noted growing concern since 2010 “about the activities of a small number of local violent extremists involved with transnational terrorist groups.”

“There has been particular concern that young Maldivians, including those within the penal system, may be at risk of becoming radicalized and joining violent Islamist extremist groups. Links have been made between Maldivians and violent extremists throughout the world,” the report stated.

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Three opposition protesters fined for obstruction of police duty

The Criminal Court has handed an MVR3000 (US$ 194.5) fine to three men who were arrested at opposition Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) protests on charges of obstructing police duty.

The three were sentenced based on eyewitness statements by police officers, a statement by the Maldives Police Services said.

MDP Spokesperson Hamid Abdul Ghafoor has condemned the charges as “manufactured”, but noted the Criminal Court had scaled down severity of sentences due to increased criticism of judiciary.

Last year’s report by UN Special Rapporteur Gabriella Knaul expressed “deep concern” over the failure of the judicial system to address “serious violations of human rights” during the Maldives’ 30 year dictatorship, warning of “more instability and unrest” should this continue to be neglected.

Ahmed Nazeer, 23, and Ahmed Ahid, 37, were arrested on March 1, 2012 at an MDP protest held to block then President Dr Mohamed Waheed Hassan from delivering a presidential address at the People’s Majlis.

According to the police statement, the two men beat on police shields with their hands and feet and attempted to break police lines at the junction of Lily Magu and Alikilegefaanu Magu in Malé.

Ubaidhulla Saeed, 29, was fined for breaking through police barricades and disobeying police orders on June 22, 2012 in front of the Bank of Maldives (BML) main branch on Boduthakurufaanu Magu.

Obstruction of police duty is deemed a crime under Article 72 of the Police Act. An individual found guilty of the offense may be fined up to MVR 12,000 (US$ 778), and/ or sentenced to six months in jail.

The MDP held serial protests calling for early elections following former President Mohamed Nasheed’s ouster in February 2012.

According to the MDP, the police arrested over 800 individuals over the past two years and the Prosecutor General has filed charges against an estimated 170 MDP supporters “for exercising their right to freedom of speech and assembly.”

The charges include terrorism, obstructing police duty, disobedience to order and attacking police officers.

The Prosecutor General’s Office states that police charged 37 individuals with obstruction of police duty in 2013.

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Man handed life sentence over 227.4 grams of cannabis

The Criminal Court has sentenced a man to life in jail for the possession of 227.4 grams of cannabis.

The police arrested Mohamed Naif in Hulhumalé in March 2013 near the ferry terminal. On sighting the police at the terminal, Naif had run rom the police and had thrown away a plastic bag containing cannabis, the police told the Criminal Court.

The court has also ordered Naif to pay a fine of MVR100,000 (US$6485) within a month.

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Police bust major drug trafficking network

The Maldives Police Services have busted a major drug trafficking network, arresting two Maldivian men with large amounts of illicit drugs and cash, local media has reported.

Under a court warrant, the police’s Drug Enforcement Department raided Henveiru Fahaage in Malé City and apprehended a network of drug-traffickers.

The police told local media it is raiding additional places reported to have links with the network and have arrested several expatriates.

Further information on the amount of drugs confiscated and the number of arrests will be revealed at a later date, the police said.

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Fairoosh removed from Head of Police Intelligence

Assistant Commissioner of Police Abdulla Fairoosh has been removed from his position as head of the police’s intelligence directorate.

The dismissal is part of a “routine” change to police management, police told local media.

Fairoosh has been transferred to the position of Head of the Services Development Directorate. Fairoosh held the position of acting Commissioner of Police until a new CP was appointed in the aftermath of the ousting of former President Mohamed Nasheed in February 2012.

Assistant Commissioner of Police Ahmed Areef is now the head of intelligence.

Meanwhile, the deputy head of the Criminal Investigation Department Chief Superintendent Mohamed Riyaz has been dismissed from his position and transferred to the Divisional Operation Command.

The head of intelligence under Mohamed Nasheed, Mohamed ‘MC’ Hameed, was removed from his position after Dr Mohamed Waheed Hassan assumed the presidency.

He was then dismissed from the Police Services in August 2012, but the Civil Court ordered reinstatement in September this year. The police have said they will appeal the Civil Court verdict.

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Raajje TV arson suspect arrested after manhunt

The Maldives Police Services have arrested Mohamed Meeaadh – 35 years old, – on suspicion of torching and destroying opposition-aligned broadcaster Raajje TV’s headquarters on October 7.

A manhunt was called for Meeaadh in mid October. On receiving a tip off, the police obtained a court warrant to search Henveiru Roasary Light house. He was apprehended hiding alone in a ground floor room at 11:50pm last night.

According to the police, Meeaadh is also on the run from a separate drug related sentence. In November 2012, the Criminal Court had sentenced Meeaad in absentia to ten years in jail for illegal possession of prescription drugs.

The police have previously arrested 7 adults and a minor for suspected involvement in the arson attack. The unnamed adults include a 24 year old, a 20 year old, two 22 year olds, and two 18 year olds. The minor is 17 years old.

The police have urged the public to forward any information regarding the attack and have pledged to provide protection to informers.

CCTV footage of the attack shows six masked men armed with machetes and iron rods breaking through a reinforced steel grill and a second wooden door before dousing the station’s control room and lobby with petrol. The ensuing fire destroyed the station’s offices, control room, computer system, and broadcasting and transmission equipment.

The station returned to air the same day on donated equipment.

Further footage shows an additional six masked men breaking and entering the building located next to the BKT Builing where Raajje TV’s offices are located. Raajje TV has said it believes the six men were attempting to find the station’s second studios.

Reporters Without Borders (RSF) condemned the police for failure to defend the station despite Raajje TV’s repeated requests for police protection, and the forwarding of a specific threat the previous evening.

Raajje TV has continuously received threats since the controversial transfer of power in February 2012.

The police have recently concluded a Supreme Court ordered investigation into a report which criticized the Supreme Court and the judiciary. Police have this week asked the Prosecutor General to press charges against both the News Head of Raajje Television Ibrahim ‘Asward’ Waheed and the Deputy Chief Executive Officer of the Station Abdulla Yameen Rasheed.

In July 2012, the police and the President’s Office had said it would not cooperate with the TV station, blocking the station from President’s Office’s press conferences and denying police protection at protests.

The Civil Court has since ruled that the police and President’s Office’s decisions to ostracize the station were both unconstitutional.

In August 2012, critical cables in the station’s control room were cut, terminating the station’s broadcast. Several Raajje TV journalists have also reported arbitrary arrests and assaults.

In February 2013, men wielding iron rods on motorbikes assaulted Asward leaving him with near near-fatal head injuries.

According to Raajje TV the station had an audience of at least 95,000 people, one of the largest shares of Maldivian media. It reaches India and Sri Lanka and is also streamed online.

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