Safari assault case: police admits to not conducting alcohol test on suspects
Police officials were questioned at a meeting held by the parliament human rights and gender committee, on Wednesday
Police officials were questioned at a meeting held by the parliament human rights and gender committee, on Wednesday
Maldives Police Service has said admitted to not conducting an alcohol test on the suspects in the alleged sexual assault case on a safari boat.
Deputy police commissioner, Abdul Mannan Yoosuf revealed this after being presented to the parliament’s committee on human rights and gender on Wednesday.
He said that the men, both 39 years of age, were not tested for alcohol consumption as this was not recorded as an issue by the responding officers.
Police’s actions in the case, specifically the decision to not conduct alcohol tests and the subsequent release of the suspects, have been subject to public criticism. There are also accusations of political influence, within the police institution.
Police defended the actions of the officers in the case, saying that they had acted as per procedures.
Referring to the accusations directed at the institution over the expedited release of the suspects, Chief Superintendent Mohamed Rasheed stated that the police’s aim is to prove criminal action.
As such, he said that the institution will continue to gather evidence, even if suspects are released.
Also at the meeting, Mannan assured that the investigation into the case is ongoing and said that they expect to collect enough evidence to send the case to prosecution. However, he said that details of the investigation cannot be disclosed to the media yet.
A Kenyan woman was sexually assaulted on a safari boat over the weekend, allegedly. There has been controversy over the case, as one local outlet reported that she was raped while the other said that she was groped. While both outlets claim to have spoken to the victim, she is to have refuted the rape claims.
Police Commissioner Mohamed Hameed, on Tuesday, said that police’s Professional Standards Command, the National Integrity Commission (NIC) and the Human Right Commission of the Maldives (HRCM) are in investigating the case as well, adding that he is “eagerly” awaiting the outcome of these inquiries.
