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Court acquits 2 charged with covering up Ihavandhoo ice plant murder

Fathmath Shaahunaz
19 November 2019, MVT 13:37
Criminal Court in Male' City. FILE PHOTO/MIHAARU
Fathmath Shaahunaz
19 November 2019, MVT 13:37

The Criminal Court acquitted two expatriates charged with covering up the murder of Ismail Umar in Ihavandhoo, Haa Alif Atoll.

Ismail Umar's body was discovered with multiple stab founds inside Ihavandhoo’s ice plant, where he had worked as a mechanic and the in-charge, in June 2017. The state charged Sumon Miah, a Bangladeshi national who was employed at the plant, with homicide, and Ikram Seihk and Mohamed Milon, also from Bangladesh, with deliberately covering up the crime.

In its verdict announced earlier this month, the Criminal Court stated that Seihk and Milon had both denied the charge. According to the court, neither their investigation statements nor the witness testimonies put forward by the prosecution proved that either of them was aware of the murder.

The court further noted that some witnesses testified that Milon had sought to arrange a speedboat transfer to Kulhudhuffhushi, Haa Dhaalu Atoll, for a friend. While Sumon Miah had fled to Kulhudhuffushi after the murder where he was eventually arrested, the court noted in its verdict that Milon's actions did not prove that he was aware of the crime or covering it up.

Hence, the court ruled that there was not enough evidence to convict Seihk and Milon, as per Article 51 of the Constitution.

The trial on the homicide charges against Sumon Miah is still ongoing.

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