Former Defense Minister Colonel (Rtd) Mohamed Nazim, who departed to Malaysia on the 04th of October on a medical trip, is scheduled to return to the Maldives on Sunday night.
Nazim was granted medical leave by the Maldives Correctional Service (MCS) following a request from the Human Rights Commission of the Maldives (HRCM). He was last granted medical leave in 2016.
While Nazim is to conclude his medical trip on Sunday, the Supreme Court had suspended his prison conviction in early October.
The apex court had ordered authorities to refrain from enforcing their sentences until it completes its review of their cases. The Criminal Court on November 4th also issued a stay order on his sentence given an ongoing review of the proceedings that led to their convictions
The Criminal Court sentenced Nazim to 11 years in prison on a weapon smuggling charge in March 2015 after police found a pistol in his apartment. His attorneys claimed that he was framed and jailed former Vice President Ahmed Adeeb’s DNA was later found on the weapon. A statement attesting to this was released by Adeeb’s office, who is also serving a decades-long sentence.
