Khanji murder case: Sunday's hearing cancelled

The hearing in the trial in murder charges against Mohamed Aabid scheduled for Sunday had to be cancelled.

The hearing was to be conducted online, and was scheduled to be held at 09:00 am, on Sunday.

Prosecutor General's Office (PGO) disclosed that the hearing was cancelled due to administrative reasons. As such, PGO noted that neither the defense nor the prosecution had received the documents of the previous hearings.

Therefore, neither the defense nor the prosecution was prepared to present the summary statement. The summary statement of the evidence was to be taken during Sunday's hearing.

The Pakistani national was charged with the murder of a coworker at the same Hulhumalé restaurant where he worked as a cook.

Shameem, the murdered Bangladeshi man, worked as a waiter at Khanji restaurant in the capital's suburban extension. He died as a result of his injuries while receiving treatment.

After the summary statements are presented, it will be followed by a verdict hearing.

Presiding over the case is Judge Ismail Shafeeu.

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.

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 in 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.

Aabid was charged in June 2022, following the 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 15 June 2022.

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

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 16 April 2022.

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.