The trial of two out of four accused in the 2006 murder of Mohamed Shihab in Gaafu Alifu Maamendhoo has begun for the third time, 18 years after the incident.
The case had previously been revisited in 2019 after the High Court ordered a retrial of Mohamed Shifraz and Ali Masood Saeed, who were sentenced to capital punishment by the Criminal Court in 2008.
The prosecution alleges that Shifraz and Masood were responsible for attacking Shihab with a wooden plank.
The High Court had called for a re-examination of their cases, but when the Criminal Court reviewed the case in 2019, it ruled that the case could not be pursued further.
This decision was appealed by the prosecution, and in 2022, the High Court ruled that the Criminal Court’s dismissal at the preliminary stage was a violation of its previous decision, ordering a full retrial.
After two years, the first hearing of the case was held in the Criminal Court today. During the hearing, the presiding judge, Ibrahim Zihunee, gave the accused the opportunity to appoint a lawyer and said that the trial would be expedited given the long duration of the case.
Prosecution presented evidence suggesting that two witnesses had seen Shifraz and Masood attack Shihab. They argued that the focus of the trial should not be on identifying the specific cause of Shibaab's death, as he was attacked by multiple people.
Shihab who was 20 at the time of his death was severely beaten while fetching water in Maamendhoo after a trip to catch sea cucumbers. He succumbed to his injuries three days later, suffering from a fractured skull, brain hemorrhage, and broken spine and ribs.
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