Tag: police

Police arrest four men for attempted sexual assault of 15 year-old girl

Police have arrested four men on accusations of attempting to sexually assault a 15 year-old girl on Nolhivaramfaru in Haa Dhaalu Atoll.

According to Police Sub-Inspector Ahmed Shiyam, the girl was attacked by the four men on Sunday night. The girl escaped the attempted assault with no injuries, he said.

Local news outlet Sun reported that the girl was attacked while “out on a date with her boyfriend” around midnight. The pair tried to escape but the girl was caught by the group and threatened with a knife to perform sexual acts.

The girl reportedly escaped from the clutches of her attackers while they were taking her to an isolated location in the island’s jungle.

This year has seen increasing reports of sexual assaults on women and children, including gang rapes.

In October, police arrested two men and a minor on suspicion of raping an Indian nurse working in the island of Gulhi in Kaafu Atoll.

In another attack in September, group of five men including the chairman of an anti-drug NGO allegedly drugged and raped a 15 year old girl on the island of Guraidhoo in Kaafu Atoll.

In August police also arrested five men on the island of Innamaadhoo in Raa Atoll for allegedly raping a 16 year-old girl

A another group of five were arrested on suspicion of gang raping an 18 year-old girl on Maabaidhoo in Laamu Atoll.

The Human Rights Commission of Maldives (HRCM) and the Department of Gender and Family Protection Services had earlier strongly condemned the recent “atrocities” of sexual violence against minors, women and persons with special needs.

In an earlier press release , HRCM noted that the prevalence of sexual violence against the most vulnerable members of society, such as the elderly, under-age children and the disabled has “reached worrying levels.”

“We call on the government, state institutions, political parties, civil society organisations and all citizens to work together with renewed courage to stop such inhumane actions, save the community and establish a secure environment,” reads the HRCM statement.

According to Sub-Inspector Shiyam, police investigations have revealed a similar trend in most of the sexual assault cases.

Shiyam said that the girls are were attacked after being “lured by their boyfriends or friends to an isolated location at late hours”. In some cases girls were “lucky enough” to escape from the perpetrators, although in a few cases they were gang raped, he added.

He urged parents to be “more responsible with their children” adding that it is not advisable to let girls hang around outside with their boyfriends at late hours.

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DRP camp and Thasmeen’s house attacked, claims party

The main opposition Dhivehi Rayyithunge Party (DRP) has released a press statement claiming the party’s main rally site and leader Ahmed Thasmeen Ali’s house was vandalised on Tuesday night.

According to the statement the DRP camp was ransacked, while the gate of Thasmeen’s house was damaged by the attackers. It did not state the extent of damage.

The DRP claimed the party’s gatherings had been disrupted and leaflets circulated threatening a “suicide attack” if the it held any gathering in Male’.

The DRP said the party’s leader and members would “not be demoralised” by the “cowardly acts to threaten the party”, and would continue to campaign to win the 2013 presidential elections.

The attacks have been reported to the police, according to the statement.

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GMR dismantles Alpha duty-free

GMR officials yesterday began to physically remove the Alpha MVKB Duty Free Shop at Ibrahim Nasir International Airport (INIA) after “several notices” to vacate the area were “ignored”, according to GMR’s Head of Corporate Communications, Mahika Chandrasena.

MVKB shop assistant Mohamed Nishwan told local newspaper Haveeru that GMR officials entered the shop around 2:00pm and began packing goods into boxes. They also began disassembling temporary wooden walls which were erected in late November to signify that the shop, which sells alcohol, cigarettes, and watches, was closed.

Customs officers arrived at 4:00pm to stop the disassembly, Haveeru reports.

Chandrasena said the shop’s owner had ignored numerous notices to vacate  the premises, to the point that that they were blocking development at INIA.

“The gentleman was supposed to vacate by a certain date and he didn’t. We had to close the shop because we have deadlines to re-vamp the duty free area. GMR gave him a lot of time and postponed the deadline several times, but he refused to leave and we had to physically remove the shop.”

Chandrasena said she understood that Customs intervened because of the presence of alcohol among the shop’s stock. “They needed to make sure it didn’t leak into Male’. That’s Customs’ purview,” she said.

One area of the shop has been vacated but GMR is now waiting for the shop owner to remove the rest.

“This is nothing to do with him personally, but we have deadlines we need to meet on our renovation,” said Chandrasena.

GMR’s action was supported by a ruling from the Civil Court, however Alpha MVKB had appealed the ruling in the High Court.

Police Sub-Inspector Ahmed Shiyam said police supported customs officials in the operation.

“We advised GMR to follow Customs’ procedures. There was some dispute but no confrontation,” he said.

Customs Director Ismail Nashid could only confirm that the contents of a duty-free shop were under Customs’ purview and that any disagreement over the shop was between Alpha MVKB and the landlord, GMR.

“Duty-free goods are Customs’ responsibility, and we will be involved in the process of opening or closing duty-free shops,” he said. “As for the goods involved, there are several options for the shop owner to choose from including importing the stock to the Maldives or selling it internationally.”

Nashid confirmed that the shop is not currently in operation, but said the decision to remove the shop from the airport would be made by GMR.

Alpha MVKB Managing Director Ibrahim ‘MVK’ Shafeeq today told Haveeru that GMR’s management style was “dictatorial” and “backed by someone.”

“We’re now seeing a foreign party trying to overtake us. How can they enter duty free shops like that and take out the goods? It shows that they have the power and that they’re operating with backing from someone,” he said.

The airport renovation is the single largest foreign investment in the Maldives at US$400 million. GMR is upgrading the old terminal ahead of completing construction of the new terminal in 2014, and will operate the airport for 25 years under a concession agreement signed last year with the government.

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Thieves cut ceiling to steal Rf 400,000 from MTCC safe

Police are investigating the theft of Rf 400,000 (US$26,000) from a safe in the office of the Maldives Transport and Contracting Company (MTCC).

Police Sub-Inspector Ahmed Shiyam said it appeared a group of people had entered the MTCC office in the Hulhumale Ferry terminal in Male’ by forcing open the door, and then cutting a hole through the ceiling to the first floor where the safe was located.

The thieves then forced open the safe and took the money.

Shiyam said the thieves “most probably” had information as to where the safe was located and that there was a significant sum of money inside.

No arrests have yet been made.

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Criminal Court issues Interpol red notice to arrest three suspects in Rf18 million fraud

The Criminal Court has issued an Interpol red notice for the arrest of three suspects involved in a Rf18 million (US$1.1 million) fraud case.

The three men are accused of transferring money to the Bank of Maldives from the State Bank of India joint saving account of the three owners of the motorcycle business ‘Sheesha’.

In a statement, police identified the three suspects as Ibrahim Shahid of Thulhadhoo in Baa Atoll, Mohamed Mustafa of Lhaimagu in Shaviyani Atoll and Mohamed Muthausim of the same island.

Following the incident, the three owners of Sheesha: Ahmed Hassan Manik, Hussain Husham and Ibrahim Husham, met with the press and said that the State Bank of India should take full responsibility for the fraud.

Hussain Husham told the media that the total amount of Rf 18 million was taken in two transactions and that the first transaction was made on November 9 and with the withdrawal of Rf 8.5 Million.

Later on December 20, the culprits withdrew a further Rf 9.5 Million from their account.

Hussain told the press that SBI transferred the money to an account with Bank of Maldives, using a forged document faxed to SBI.

He said the document had the name and signature of Ahmed Hassan Manik, and that the money transferred to Bank of Maldives account had already been withdrawn when they came to know about it.

He also said police arrested one person in connection with the case, but that the court had released him after determining that he was arrested unlawfully.

Husaain said the company had decided to sue the State Bank of India and that they should take full responsibility.

Police Sub-Inspector Ahmed Shiyam said police arrested the head of the group with some documents.

‘’But the court released him and he immediately left the country,’’ Shiyam said. ‘’We have another person held in detention, and we are looking for other three suspects including the person we arrested before.’’

Shiyam said yesterday an Interpol red notice was issued and that police were trying to locate the individuals through Interpol system.

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Salaf asks PIC to take action against police for protecting ‘idols’

Religious NGO Jamiyyathul Salaf has sent a letter to the Police Integrity Commission (PIC) demanding it investigate and take action against police for protecting the ‘idolatrous’ SAARC monuments in Addu.

In its letter, Jamiyyathul Salaf noted that Islamic Minister Dr Abdul Majeed Abdul Bari had declared that the SAARC monuments kept in Addu were un-Islamic and unconstitutional.

Salaf said that after the Islamic Minister publicly revealed his stand on the issue, police had worked to protect the monuments and said that it showed that police “have no respect for the laws.”

Salaf claimed that some police officers had refused to go out and protect the monuments, and that those police officers were threatened and forced to protect the monuments.

In the letter Salaf also said that the police were aware that the idolatrous monuments were banned in the Maldives by more than one article of the law.

A police spokesperson today told Minivan News that police were not protecting any “idols” but was active in some parts of Addu to control possible unrest.

‘’Those were properties of other nations and police are legally obliged to protect people’s property,’’ he said.

When the SAARC Summit was held in Addu, each member state left a symbol of their nation in Addu City. Some of the monuments were determined by religious groups and the Islamic Minister as un-Islamic.

The monument from Pakistan representing the Indus Valley Civilization and Sri Lankan monument representing its nation’s lion were attacked. Some parts of the Pakistan monument were stolen and later replaced.

Opposition Adhaalath Party and Progressive Party of the Maldives [PPM] heavily criticized the government for keeping the monuments in Addu and claimed that the monuments cannot be kept in the Maldives according to the laws.

PPM Council members recently reported the Maldives Customs Department to police for allowing the monuments to be imported to the country.

The Islamic Minister recently asked the President’s Office and other institutions to remove the monuments.

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Gassan Maumoon sues Police Chief Superintendent Jinah for unlawful arrest

Gassan Maumoon, son of former President Maumoon Abdul Gayoom, has filed a case at the Civil Court against Chief Superintendent of Police Mohamed Jinah, claiming that Gassan was unlawfully arrested on his order.

Gassan’s lawyer Mohamed Waheed Ibrahim ‘Wadde’ confirmed that the case was filed yesterday.

Gassan was arrested last month on allegations that he hurled a wooden plank at protesters from his balcony on October 20. A 17 year-old was critically injured after the plank struck him on the head, resulting in skull fractures and paralysis down his left side.

Waheed told local media this week that Jinah’s order to arrest Gassan was unconstitutional and violated provisions of the police act. The Civil Court was requested to determine that Jinah’s order was unlawful.

Chief Judge of the Criminal Court Abdulla Mohamed had ruled that Gassan’s arrest was unlawful and ordered his immediate release.

The Judicial Services Commission (JSC) has recently competed a report on Abdulla Mohamed detailing the judge’s misconduct, notably politically-biased comments given to opposition-aligned private broadcaster DhiTV.

Contacted for a comment today, Chief Superintended Jinah referred Minivan News to Police Spokesperson Sub-Inspector Ahmed Shiyam.

Shiyam said police did not wish to comment on a case involving the arrest of a specific individual.

“Besides, the police have not been officially informed of this case,” he added.

Following his release by the Criminal Court, Jinah held a press conference and exhibited video footage of the plank hitting the 17 year-old.

Jinah had said at the press conference on October 16 that police wished to “reveal the truth” about the incident as “deliberately false allegations have been made against police using the media” to bring the institution into disrepute and cast aspersions on senior officers.

Police decided to reveal the video footage to the public because “many people have been using different media to claim that [the incident] never happened and make serious allegations against police,” Jinah had said.

He told the media that the court was now requested to determine that Jinah personally has the responsible to his orders.

When Gassan was arrested, former Attorney General Azima Shukoor and Waheed both went to the Criminal Court and filed a case against police claiming that the arrest was unlawful and to order immediate release of Gassan, to which court the court agreed and ordered immediate release of Gassan.

When Minivan News contacted Jinah for a comment he referred Minivan News to Police Spokesperson Sub-Inspector Ahmed Shiyam.

Shiyam said that police have been arresting different persons to investigate cases presented to the police and that police would not like to comment on a specific person’s case.

‘’Besides, the police have not been officially informed of this case,’’ he added.

After the incident police met with the press and viewed video footage captured near Aliwaage when the wooden plank was dropped.

Opposition that time said that the wooden plank did not come from Aliwaage and insisted that it was thrown at Aliwaage from the ground.

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Parliament summons Education Minister for questioning over Huraa drownings

Parliament yesterday summoned Education Minister Shifa Mohamed to question her about the Huraa drowning incident in which four students and the principal of Hiriya school died.

Police have meanwhile concluded their investigation into the incident and have sent the case to the Prosecutor General.

Shifa told Minivan News that  she was questioned about the incident itself, and about how the Education Ministry had reacted in order to avoid such incidents from reoccuring.

”I told the parliament committee that the Education Ministry conducted an investigation, which has been now concluded and sent to the Human Rights Commission of the Maldives (HRCM), police and other institutions,” she said. ”Police have concluded their investigation into the matter and sent it the Prosecutor General.”

Parents of the students had requested the Ministry not reveal the investigation report at the time because its potential political misuse would make it harder for parents to move on, she said.

She also revealed that there were four expat teachers involved in the incident who had been banned from leaving the country until the case was finalised.

”I asked the Permanent Secretary of the Education Ministry to take action against any civil servant that they found to have neglected their duties,” she said.

Police Sub-Inspector Ahmed Shiyam said the police investigation into the incident has been concluded.

”We cannot give further details of the case, the PG will decide whether or not to forward the case to the court,” he said.

Deputy Prosecutor General Hussain Shameem told Minvian News that the case with the PG’s office, which was  currently studying the investigation report to determine if it could be forwarded to the court.

He declined to give details of the investigation.

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Sri Lankan SAARC monument vandalised as PPM file case over import of ‘idols’

The SAARC monument designed and gifted to the Maldives by the Sri Lankan government, has been doused with crude oil.

The lion statue, representing the national symbol of Sri Lanka, was vandalised last night following the toppling, burning and theft of the Pakistani monument, which protesters had claimed was idolatrous.

Council Member of the Progressive Party of Maldives (PPM), Ahmed ‘Marz’ Saleem, meanwhile today filed a case with police against the Maldives Customs Department for allowing  ‘idols’ to be imported to the Maldives for the SAARC Summit.

The PPM is the party founded by former President Maumoon Abdul Gayoom, following its acrimonious split with the major opposition party, the Dhivehi Rayithunge Party (DRP).

Speaking to Minivan News today, Saleem said that four acts in the Maldives banned the importation of idols, and that the Customs Department should be held responsible for letting the statues be imported into the country.

”It violates the Police Act, Customs Act, Contraband Act and the Religious Unity Act,” he contested.

“I reported the case to the police because it is a criminal offence which has to be investigated by police and sent to the Prosecutor General, to be taken to court according to Maldivian law,” Saleem said. ”We looked into the matter of these idols and found out that these things were not made here, which means they much have been imported from somewhere else.”

He said that displaying the items in public “is another offence. Citizens who love the religion of Islam will not allow such items to kept in public, and will seek to destroy them.”

”Police will have no lawful authority to stop citizens from destroying the idols, because they are illegal and against Islam,” he said, adding that the PPM has filed a second case in the Police Integrity Commission (PIC) demanding investigation of whoever gave orders for police to defend the monuments when citizens went out to destroy them.

”We requested the PIC investigate and find out who exactly gave the orders, who implemented the orders, and to take action against them,” he said.

He also alleged that the current government was attempting “to erase Islam from the country.”

”The current government dissolved the Quran Department, Arabiyya School and women’s mosques, all to erase the religion of Islam,” Saleem alleged.

Spokesperson for the Customs Department, Mohamed Ibrahim, did not respond to Minivan News at time of press.

Police Sub-Inspector Ahmed Shiyam meanwhile confirmed that a case against the Customs Department was filed with police.

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