The Criminal Court had issued verdicts in five cases during the lockdown period in the Greater Malé Region.
The court revealed to RaajjeMV that they had proceeded with pending trials through video conferencing in cooperation with the Prosecutor General’s Office, despite the lockdown order issued on April 15 following a community transmission of the Covid-19 in the Maldives capital.
As such, the court has issued verdicts in a total of five cases thus far.
They include:
- A sexual assault attempt against a minor,
- Two cases of damage to property,
- A case of an individual deliberately entering unauthorized property,
- A theft case.
The Criminal Court has also concluded 22 remand cases upon the request from the PG office.
The court reached the decision to restart trials through video conferencing on May 10 and the PG, Hussain Shameem had noted that it will begin with trials that have reached the verdict stage. The video conferences were joined by judges working from home and authorities arranged for those remanded at the prison facility on Maafushi island to be presented to the Maafushi Court for their trials.
These proceedings are being conducted under the protocols set by the top court, said the lower court.
Shameem earlier noted that the opportunity must be used to revolutionize how the criminal justice system operates, expedite trials, explore smart solutions and make the process more transparent.
