Criminal Court has extended the remand period for five suspects linked to the 100kg drug bust.
The counter-narcotics operation was conducted in October with joint cooperation from the Drug Enforcement Department, Drug Intelligence, Marine Police and the Forensics Department of the Maldives Police Service.
Remand was extended for:
- Mohamed Ahmed, 34 and native to Kalaidhoo island in Laamu atoll,
- Mohamed Hussain, 61 and native to Bandidhoo island in Dhaalu atoll,
- Juman Musthafa, 19 and native to Velidhoo island in Noonu atoll,
- MD Rafeegul Islam, 35, Bangladesh native,
- MD Mobin, 24, Bangladesh native.
According to an order issued earlier citing the statements provided in the investigation, Juman and Mohamed Ahmed were to have made a long journey on a safari vessel to acquire the 100kgs of drugs. As such, they had stopped to load the drugs stuffed inside sacks, from a foreign vessel.
Although there were no signs of the sacks onboard the vessel, officers found ropes that may have been used to bind the sacks together, on the liveaboard vessel.
Initially the police institution had arrested 10 individuals in connection to the case on October 13, some of them have since been released. Police earlier publicized the identities of eight suspects.
MPS had also requested the Prosecutor General’s Office to appeal the decision to release some of the suspects, at court. However, the PG Office decided against it.
During the operations, officers searched some uninhabited islands, some residences of Hulhumalé as well as Malé, a speedboat and a safari vessel. The drugs were confiscated from an uninhabited island; Bodukaashihuraa in Alif Dhaal atoll.
In a separate operation the police had consecutively confiscated 215kg of narcotics as well. Two suspects were arrested in connection to the case and they remain in police custody.
