November 3 Coup-leader Luthfee agrees to fleeing from detention, requests plea deal

Abdulla Luthfee, H. Haajaraage, the prime orchestrator for the 3 November 1988 coup d'état who fled from detention while seeking healthcare abroad, has agreed to the charges raised against him relating to his escape, and has requested a plea deal for his sentencing.

Abdulla Luthfee was sentenced to life in prison after being convicted of orchestrating the 3 November coup. He fled authorities after having been sent abroad to seek healthcare in 2010 under a travel document issued to him for a period of one year. Luthfee continued to reside in Sri Lanka without legal documents until 2019, following which he surrendered himself to Sri Lankan police and was repatriated back to the Maldives.

Many had criticized the move to have Luthfee repatriated to the Maldives like an innocent citizen in July 2019.

At the time Luthfee was brought back to the Maldives, he had four years left on his prison sentence for having orchestrated the November 3 coup. An additional charge was raised against for fleeing detention, to which he had plead guilty, requesting a pela deal to have his sentence lightened. He stated that he wished to have the issue resolved as soon as possible, and that he did not believe he had fled detention as he had departed along with permission from relevant authorities.

Assisted by armed Tamil mercenaries, businessman Abdulla Luthfee had orchestrated a devastating coup d'état in the Maldives on 3 November 1988. 19 Maldivians were killed in the attack, eight of whom were National Security Service personnel. Abdulla Luthfee had first been sentenced to death following the charges of initiating a coup being proved against him, with the sentence being reduced to 25 years in prison under the administration of former president Maumoon Abdul Gayyoom. While there are three years left on Luthfee's sentence, he will be a free man once more after the sentence is served in full.