Hearings of May 6 terrorist attack trial to begin on Sunday
The hearing is scheduled for 1pm, June 12
Third suspect being arrested regarding the attack on Former President Mohamed Nasheed
A hearing of the trial in charges raised against the suspected in connection with the assassination attempt on the life of current Speaker of Parliament and Former President Mohamed Nasheed, has been scheduled.
The hearing is scheduled to begin at 1pm on Sunday June 12.
The last hearing in connection with the case was held on June 9, where a decision was announced regarding prior submissions.
The pre-trial submissions were presented to the court on June 4. Some of the submissions presented by the state include collecting witness testimonies in anonymity, a submission seeking to reject the witnesses presented by the defendant to testify that they were not present at the scene of the crime as well as a request to make permanent, the order to protect evidence.
The court decided to accept the state prosecutors’ submission to make permanent the order to protect evidence as well as the submission to ensure anonymity of secret witnesses.
As for the witnesses produced by the defendants to testify that they were not present at the scene at the time of the crime, it was rejected by the court.
The judges’ bench had also rejected a number of submissions presented by the defendants.
Nasheed was targeted in an assassination attempt on May 6, as he was heading out to attend an event in an island. The attack, which saw a remote-controlled IED explode near his residence in the center of Malé City, caused serious injuries to the ex-president who was rushed to the hospital within seven minutes after being knocked to the ground by the blast.
The shrapnel pieces from the bomb blast caused substantial damage to his internal organs, but had missed some vital arteries and organs. A shrapnel piece struck his rib, which otherwise would have struck his heart, leading to fatality. Speaker Nasheed underwent 16 hours of live-saving surgery at ADK hospital in Male City , and was later taken aboard for treatment.
Nasheed returned to Maldives earlier in October 2021, after nearly five months abroad for medical treatment .
The police revealed in July that 10 suspects had been arrested in total in connection with the attack .
Shortly after the attack on May 6, authorities had announced plans to bring in foreign investigators to assist in the investigation. As such, a team from the Australian Federal Police is assisting in the probe, as well as American experts.
Suspect arrested over the assassination attempt, Adhuham Ahmed Rasheed was slapped with a 23-year prison sentence in December 2021, after he pleaded guilty to all four charges raised against him, without any coercion or influence, during a hearing held on September 21. Following this, the court had fast-tracked his trial.
The remaining suspects include Mujaz Ahmed, Thahmeen Ahmed, Ali Haisham, Is’haq, Fahumy Ali, Mohamed Nazim, Mohamed Thasleem as well as Abdulla Ali Manik.
Maldives Police Service (MPS) earlier revealed that Thasleem was arrested from Addu City and findings indicate that he was one of the masterminds behind the assassination attempt. He is also the person who is supposed to have raised the suggestion to kill Nasheed.
Abdulla Ali Manik was involved in an uprising in Himandhoo island of Alif Alif atoll in 2007 , involving Islamic radicals, and was jailed for 10 years in connection with the case. He was released after he completed the term of the sentence .
