Police looking into case where child was harmed

Police have said that they are working with the relevant agencies regarding the case where a child was forced to smoke a cigarette and threatened in a Central Maldives island.

The police said that two 17 year olds under the care of the Social and Family Ministry had allegedly threatened the child, with the incident being reported yesterday evening at 6:35pm.

The father of the 10 year old boy posted on social media stating that two 17 year olds under the care of the Social and Family Ministry had threatened his son while he was on his way to the mosque for Maqrib prayers.

The 10 year old was threatened after he was taken to an abandoned area.

The father had stated that the two 17 year olds had attempted to force his son to smoke. The father also said that the 17 year olds had pressed the lit cigarette onto his son's body and threatened that if he told his family, they would kill him.

The father expressed in a dissatisfied manner that his son was scared after the incident and had trouble talking. He called on agencies to look into the case and quickly take steps.