The Criminal Court on Tuesday freed an elderly man who was accused of sexually assaulting four sisters in an island in the southern Gaafu Dhaalu atoll.
The man was freed after being kept under house arrest for 25 days.
When the police initially took him to be remanded, the court had given him 15-days of house arrest, and later added 10 more days to it. He was kept under house arrest due to his old age, Mihaaru is aware.
The court had also imposed a travel ban on the 75-year-old man before his release.
An expat who was taking care of the elderly man was also arrested in relation to the same charges. He still remains in custody.
The man who was accused of sexually assaulting the four sisters had moved to the capital Male after the allegations surfaced and the police began probing the matter.
The eldest sister fled to Male after alleged years of abuse, and after she moved, her three younger siblings became the man’s targets.
There were also allegations of him abusing other children in the community.
Reportedly, he was a prominent figure in the island and owned a shop there. He would allegedly lure his victims by offering them food and clothes from his shop, and even paying for refurbishments of their homes.
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