Police speedboat fire: terror charges raised against two
The police launch docked at the harbour of the Thundi district of Gan island (Laamu atoll), was burned down on March 22
The police launch docked at the harbour of the Thundi district of Gan island (Laamu atoll), was burned down on March 22
Terror charges have been raised against two suspects in relation the arson attack on a police speedboat.
The police launch docked at the harbour of the Thundi district of Gan island (Laamu atoll), was burned down on March 22.
According to the Prosecutor General’s Office, terrorism charges have been raised against Moosa Inas and Abdul Latheef Ibrahim; both men are native to Gan island.
They were charged under the Anti-Terrorism Act, after the discovery of material promoting and supporting extremism, in hard disks confiscated during the investigation.
Noting that the hard drive was confiscated from Inas under a court order, the PGO said that it contained documents and videos supporting the Islamic State and Al-Qaeda.
A hard drive seized from Latheef had documents endorsing Al-Qaeda as well as a third terror organization, Jabhat al-Nusra, according to the PGO.
If found guilty, the suspects face a jail sentence between one to three years.
A report published by the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) this week says that the Islamic State is working in the Maldives “with a network of supporters”.
While the Islamic State is to have taken responsibility for an arson attack that destroyed five boats in the Mahibadhoo island harbour on April 15, the UNSC reports highlights that according to information received the attack “was a retaliation against government investigations into extremism and drug trafficking".
Police had previously said that Mahibadhoo fire “appears to be an terrorist attack”, while officials at a press conference held in late April stated that the incident had similarities with other such attacks including the police speedboat attack.
