Criminal Court has decided on Thursday that the state will not provide lawyers for Saahil Ali, a man accused of brutally murdering a woman in Malé last year, as he has exercised his right to remain silent and refuses to cooperate with lawyers.
Five charges were pressed against Saahil for the murder of Shiau Mohamed Saeed and further harming her body in a house in Malé. The hearings for the trial against Saahil, from Faafu atoll Nilandhoo, are conducted in secrecy.
Criminal Court said that Saahil refused to talk in Thursday's hearing. Yet they noted that he does show any reason why he may not be capable of it.
The court said lawyers have been arranged with state funding for Saahil on two different occasions, and that he has refused to cooperate with them both times. Therefore the Attorney General's Office (AGO) has decided they will not be providing him with additional lawyers.
In the hearing, after ordering the preservation of the evidence submitted regarding this case, the court said they informed Saahil that he can review the documents submitted for the case while he's at court.
He has been provided with the opportunity to respond to the charges pressed against him at the next hearing, the court said.
Sign In