Tag: North Ari Atoll

Police reveal details of record drugs seizure

Police have released detailed information of the special operation conducted to seize 24kgs of heroin smuggled into the Maldives using an Iranian vessel last month.

A police officer implicated in the crime as well as the 11 Pakistani nationals on the Iranian vessel were among the 18 persons arrested in connection with the case.

In the statement the police said that officers involved in the operation experienced things that they had never experienced before, and it was noted that the police officers aboard the speedboat were not carrying any weapons.

Police said that officers involved in the operation first followed two Maldivians who went to Villimalé on March 4 where the Maldivian boat the ‘Violet’ was prepared to set sail to meet an Iranian vessel which had journeyed from Chahabar, Iran.

When the two Maldivians reached the boat docked in Villimalé harbour, the boat captain and three expats working on board had already made all preparations to set sail towards North Ari atoll at around 3:30pm.

Police officers were assigned to follow the ‘Violet’ on a gulf craft speedboat as it left Malé with intercepted communications revealing that the Maldivian boat planned to meet with the Iranian craft at 11pm that evening.

The boat reached North Ari atoll at 6:15pm, stopping in the ocean between Rasdhoo and Mathiveri, before making its first trip to meet the Iranian vessel at 3:30am in the morning.

According to police, the meeting point of the Iranian vessel and the ‘Violet’ was 30 nautical miles north of North Ari atoll. The Maldivian boat travelled outside the EEZ of the Maldives in heavy rain and rough seas with the police speedboat following throughout.

When the ‘Violet’ reached the meeting point, its crew was informed that the Iranian ship was still 450 miles away from the meeting point, and that they will take 56 hours to get there. The ‘Violet’ subsequently returned to North Ari atoll.

Police said the two men police originally followed subsequently returned to Malé, contacting their agent in Iran at 11:30pm to get details regarding the next attempted rendezvous.

The following day, as the ‘Violet’ refueled in preparation for its second trip to meet the Iranian vessel, the two Maldivians suspects attempted to transfer money to agents in Iran.

Police have revealed that the money was transferred by a member of the Maldives Police Service who has subsequently been arrested in connection with the case.

The next day ‘Violet’ travelled on the same route as before, again stopping between Ukulhas and Mathiveri, before being contacted at 12:45am by the Iranian ship which explained that it was 200 miles from the meeting point.

After receiving this news, the Maldivian boat travelled towards Baa Atoll – outside Maldivian territorial waters – and waited there until the Iranian vessel informed the crew that the drugs were hidden inside a small dingy in the Iranian vessel.

The following day (March 9) the Maldivian vessel reached the meeting point, but again had to wait for the Iranian vessel to get there the next morning.

When the two boats met the the Maldivian boat took a small dingy released by the Iranian vessel and began its trip back to Malé late in the afternoon of March 10, the police statement said.

Upon their arrival in Hulhumale’ that evening, all aboard ‘Violet’ were arrested and the drugs seized.

After collecting enough information to begin the operation, police assigned 16 officers to follow ‘Violet’: five intelligence officers were based in Mathiveri Island, a surveillance team consisting on seven officers was created.

Eight intelligence officers were assigned as a ground analysis team, and a further five were assigned as ground technical team. Three intelligence officers were assigned as covert team and two others were used to trace communications, the police statement revealed.

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School calls in spiritual healer after 10 female students “possessed by spirits”

A school on the island of Ukulhas in North Ari Atoll has been closed down after a class of 10 female eighth grade students collectively fainted at 10:30am this morning and were hospitalised.

Ukulhas Island Council Vice President Abdulla Firaq told Minivan News the girls were behaving as if “possessed by spirits”.

“They are hurting themselves, making faces and doing all sorts of things that people do when people are possessed by spirits,’’ he said.

“The female students have been experiencing difficulties such as headaches, stomachaches and dizziness inside the school since last week,” Firaq said.

The school brought in a spiritual healer to investigate the mysterious symptoms, Firaq said.

“Two days ago a spiritual healer was brought to the school to see what was going on and today all the female students in the eighth grade fainted at the same time.”

Firaq said some other students in the school were “mentally affected” and also fainted after seeing the eighth grade students do the same, but added that these students had been admitted to the island hospital and were now back to normal.

Firaq told Minivan News that the spirits talked to the spiritual healer through the possessed students, telling the healer that the  students were damaging the oleander trees inside the school grounds which were their homes.

“The spirits told the healer that they were forced to live inside the school grounds because of a spell cast on the school by a sorcerer four years ago,” Firaq said.

Police Spokesperson Chief Inspector Hassan Haneef confirmed that 10 students on the island of Ukulhas in Alif Alif Atoll had all been hospitalised after fainting this morning.

Haneef added that police were currently investigating the matter. Asked about the nature of these investigations, the police service would not confirm whether the case involved sorcery, known locally as ‘fandita’.

“It’s something like that,” Haneef said.

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Convicted terrorist escapes DPRS on motorbike

A man sentenced for six years for charges of terrorism relating to the Himandhoo incident escaped yesterday as he was being transferred from the court to Malé Prison.

Spokesperson for the Juvenile Court Zaeema Nasheed identified the man as Hussein Nishan, 18, of Roze Hose in Himandhoo of North Ari Atoll.

Zaeema said that the man escaped by the time he was transferred to Male’ prison by a court officer from the Juvenile Court yesterday around 3:00pm.

”A court officer took him to the Department of Penitentiary and Rehabilitation Service (DPRS) and the department requested a court officer to take him to Male’ jail,” she said. ”It is the responsibility of the DPRS to take prisoners to the place where they are to be kept.”

She said Nishan fled on a motor-bike which stopped near Galolhu Male’ Hiya.

”The court officer immediately informed us about the incident,” Zaeema said, adding the department “immediately informed the police.”

She said the court officer did not manage to see the registration number of the motor bike.

Zaeema said there had several recent cases where prisoners had escaped custody, but noted that this was the most recent incident.

”We do not have a vehicle at the court [to transfer prisoners,” she said, ”and we have very low security procedures.”

She said Nishan was charged for terrorism in 2007 for attacking the Armed Forces of Maldives in Himandhoo when he was only 16 years old.

”The case was sent to the court by the Prosecutor General’s office on 24 July 2008.”

A source in DPRS told Minivan News that the court officer went with Nishan to DPRS around 4:00pm yesterday.

”We told him to transfer Nishan to Male’ Jail,” he said, ”and when we called after a while to check where he was, Niham said that the man escaped.”

He added that Nishan had cooperated during the trial.

Sub-Inspector Ahmed Shiyam confirmed the case was reported to the police yesterday afternoon.

Shiyam said Nishan had not yet been found and added that the police are searching for him.

Spokesperson for the DRPS Moosa Rameez did not respond to Minivan News at time of press.

President Mohamed Nasheed has previously vowed to the people of Himandhoo that the government will grant clemency to Himandhoo inmates convicted for terrorism.

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