The parliamentary representative of capital Male's North Maafannu constituency, Imthiyaz Fahmy, on Monday lodged a case with the parliament over the 149kg drug bust from Hulhuvaarulu, Gaafu Dhaalu Atoll in April 2019.
The chair of the Judiciary Committee submitted the case two days after the magistrate court of Gadhdhoo, Gaafu Dhaalu Atoll, threw out charges against the five suspects arrested in connection with the bust: Ahmed Khaleel, 42, from Gadhdhoo, Gaafu Dhaalu Atoll, Shafeez Mohamed, 35, and Ahmed Anil, 34, both from Kondey, Gaafu Alif Atoll, Ali Shakir, 30, from Nilandhoo, Gaafu Alif Atoll, and Yaamih Haleedh, 23 from Gadhdhoo, Gaafu Dhaalu Atoll.
Four of them were charged with trafficking diamorphine, while the other was charged as an accomplice
Elaborating on the dismissal of charges, Gadhdhoo Magistrate Court stated that the Prosecutor General's Office had filed the charges after the legally mandated period of time expired. Furthermore, the court noted that the police had conducted some searches and made certain arrests without the necessary warrants.
MP Imthiyaz said via Twitter that he submitted the case in order to hold accountable the persons responsible for the case dismissal. He added that the parliament would summon individuals as needed for questioning, under its mandate.
The case was one of the biggest drug busts of Maldives in recent history. Maldives Police Service had conducted a 72-hour operation in order to locate the illegal narcotics, which were found buried in Hulhuvaarulu.
The 100 kilograms of heroin and 49 kilograms of cannabis had a street value of up to MVR 260 million, per the police.
Under Maldivian law, drug trafficking is a serious criminal offence punishable by life imprisonment and carries a hefty fine in the range of MVR 100,000 (USD 6,485) to MVR 1 million (USD 64,850).
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