Pres. threatens Fiyaz: PO against pressing charges, cites lack of evidence

The Prosecutor General's Office (PG Office) has decided not to press charges, stating that there is no evidence that President Dr. Mohamed Muizzu threatened renowned journalist and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of ‘Adhadhu’ news, Hussain Fiyaz Moosa.

PG Office revealed that at around 07:04pm on 14 March 2025, a case was filed with the Maldives Police Service (MPS) alleging that President Dr. Mohamed Muizzu had phoned Fiyaz and threatened him. The police investigated the matter and submitted it to Duty Prosecution on 23 March 2025.

After examining the evidence gathered by the police institution, the office stated that there was no legally interpretable word or phrase used by the president that could be considered a threat to Hussain Fiyaz Moosa. Therefore, the office has decided not to press charges in the case.

Looking at how the crime of threatening is defined in the law:

• Chapter 120 of Law No. 9/2014 (Maldives Penal Code) - An act is legally considered a threat if a person's reckless action causes fear of death or serious bodily injury to another person. It is also a threat if someone threatens to commit a crime that could cause injury to another person.
• Article 2 of Law No. 17/2010 (Prohibition of Threatening and Usage of Dangerous Weapons and Sharp Objects Act) - An act is legally considered a threat if someone threatens or intimidates harm to a person's life, body, family member, or someone under their guardianship.

Hussain Fiyaz Moosa filed the case with the police institution claiming that during a phone call, the president threatened him by saying he would "take the most severe legal action against him."

PG Office has decided that this does not constitute a criminal threat as defined by the aforementioned legal provisions, and therefore, this is not a case where criminal charges can be filed.

On the night of 14 March 2025, President Muizzu reportedly threatened Fiyaz over the phone. RaajjeMV understands that Muizzu is to have told Fiyaz that he would take “all” possible measures against him. The reason behind the president’s anger and threat towards the journalist, remains unclear.

Fiyaz was summoned to the police headquarters on March 20 to give a statement in connection with the case filed by ‘Adhadhu’ news, requesting an investigation into President Muizzu's threats, as well as a case submitted by the Maldives Media Council asking for the matter to be looked into.

While the PG Office has decided not to press charges in the case of the president threatening Fiyaz, Transparency Maldives (TM) and the International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) have called for an independent investigation into the matter.

The Maldives Journalist Association (MJA) has also expressed concern, stating that receiving threats from the country's leader is absolutely unacceptable.

In their statement, MJA noted that there have been many cases of threats received by various journalists of ‘Adhadhu’ news on multiple occasions, and it is concerning that no adequate action has been taken regarding these matters.

In addition to MJA, the opposition MDP and many members of the public continue to condemn this act and call on authorities to investigate the matter.