Khanji murder case: witness testimonies taken from two scene-of-crime officers

A hearing of the trial in murder charges against Mohamed Aabid, has been held at the Criminal Court. Aabid , a Pakistani national was charged with murdering a fellow worker at the same restaurant in Hulhu Male where he worked as a chef.

Wednesday's hearing of the trial heard some witness testimonies. The judges’ bench collected the witness testimonies of two scene-of-crime police officers.

The state is charging Aabid with deliberate murder using a sharp weapon and accused the suspect of stabbing his victim in the face and chest.

The officer who was summoned first has been working as a scene-of-crime officer stationed in Hulhumalé, since 2018. The officer was summoned with regard to two witness reports submitted by the state prosecutors.

The officer revealed that the kitchen had already been cleaned when he arrived at the scene, but he still saw some traces of blood left. He had then proceeded to collect material evidence from the scene and forward them to the forensic laboratory, he said.

As such, he had collected a few knives from the scene, suspected to have been the murder weapon.

The second officer summoned to Wednesday’s hearing has been working as a scene-of-crime officer since 2014 and was the officer who collected material evidence after searching Aabid and the clothes he was wearing.

Three more witnesses presented by the state, are yet to give their testimonies in the trial.

The presiding judge revealed that a hearing will be scheduled for the remaining testimonies, in the near future.

Presiding over the case is Judge Ismail Shafeeu.

Aabid faces a death penalty if the court finds him guilty of the charges pressed against him.

However, a sentence of 15 to 25 years will be imposed on the suspect if the murder charges are unproven, or if he is found guilty of abetting the murder or planning it.

In his preliminary statement, the suspect asserted that he had not attacked the Bangladeshi man with the intention to kill him and that although he had attacked the man, he had not intentionally inflicted injuries on him.

Aabid’s lawyer revealed that his client had simply acted on self-defense.

The state had presented 18 pieces of evidence in connection with the murder case, including 11 witnesses linking the suspect and victim to their nationalities.

The presiding judge went on to reveal that the judges’ bench will put in their best efforts to conclude the hearings of the case and issue a verdict in during October.

Aabid was charged in June 2022, following murder at Khanji restaurant in Hulhumalé in April 2022.

The Prosecutor General’s Office (PG Office) forwarded the charges of deliberate murder with a sharp weapon, to the Criminal Court on June 15.

The charges come under the act on the prohibition of threatening and being in possession of sharp weapons and objects.

The murdered Bangladeshi man, Shameem was employed as a waiter at Khanji restaurant in the capital’s suburban extension.

He died from injuries , while receiving treatment .

Maldives Police Service (MPS) revealed that they received information of the assault with a sharp weapon inside a restaurant in Hulhumalé, on the evening of April 16.

A team of police officers was dispatched to the area shortly after the report was received.

The injured Bangladeshi man was rushed to the hospital immediately. However, doctors had pronounced the man dead a short while after he was taken in for treatment.

The suspected killer was arrested a day later, from the beach area in Hulhumalé Phase II.