Two men charged in connection with the stabbing of lawyer Mahfooz Saeed in September 2015 were found not guilty of attempted murder. The judge cited the lack of eyewitness testimony and video footage to clearly identify the defendants as the assailants. Phone call details obtained without a warrant were ruled inadmissible.
Two others charged as accomplices were also acquitted.
Two suspects, a 34-year-old man and 40-year-old woman, were arrested over the mugging of an elderly man, who passed away after he was stabbed on Tuesday morning.
The 75-year-old victim, identified as Adnan Hussain from Thaa Omadhoo, reportedly died after he went to the Maafannu police station to report the theft of his wallet.
Changes were announced to the Orchid route of the minibus service in Malé with new stops at the Indira Gandhi Memorial Hospital and the Vilimalé ferry terminal.
A group of local NGOs expressed concern over a last-minute addition to the waste management bill that would allow the import of waste from other countries. A section that prohibited waste importation was scrapped before the bill was passed in late November.
“What this means is that the government has now opened up vulnerable communities of the Maldives to the same fate as other developing countries subjected to the global waste mountain generated by developed countries,” a joint statement warned, criticising the lack of public consultation, reiterating objections to ongoing Waste-to-Energy incineration projects, and calling on the president not to ratify the legislation.
The environment ministry told the press that it would seek amendments to reinstate the waste importation prohibition when parliament returns from recess.
The installation of solar panels in the Hulhumalé link road began under a World Bank-funded renewable energy project. The 5 megawatt project by Thailand’s Ensys Co Limited is “the largest ongoing Solar PV installation in a single grid in Maldives,” according to the environment ministry, which estimated savings of MVR15 million (US$972,700) to MVR20 million from expenditure on fossil fuel imports.
Drone operating licenses will be issued next year after the enactment of new regulations on unmanned aircraft systems, the transport and civil aviation minister announced.
A search operation was launched in Maafushi jail based on intelligence information about scam calls and terrorist activity. Mobile phones, SIM cards and drugs were confiscated.
The police and military were deployed for the joint operation at the request of the Maldives Correctional Service.
The Maldives Qualifications Authority warned against attaining higher education and training certificates that are not recognised for accreditation. Courses that award such certificates up to PhD level are increasingly being falsely advertised, the MQA said.
Academic qualifications sought overseas must be validated by the MQA for application to government jobs.
Construction of the Thilamalé bridge remains on schedule despite the collapse of a crane, according to the infrastructure ministry. The mobile crane’s boom failed while lifting material needed for concrete piling of pillars on to a jack-up platform at sea. There were no injuries or damages to other equipment and the crane’s boom has been restored, it added.
Last month, the bridge developer Afcons was fined MVR69.4 million (US$4.5 million) over damages caused by a self-elevating platform that ran aground on the Vilimalé reef.
About MVR23 million (US$1.4 million) has been lost to scam with nearly 1,000 cases reported so far this year, the police chief revealed at the opening of a multi-agency workshop on combating scam as part of a ‘100 Days Action Plan’ initiated by Economic Crime Department of the police.
The public loses MVR68,000 a day on average. Most scam calls are made by prisoners with smuggled mobile phones, he noted.
As a measure against scam calls from unregistered mobile numbers, the sale of activated SIM cards was banned with effect on 1 December. A SIM card would only be activated once the service provider has the customer’s full information.
One in five Maldivians suffer from depression, the health minister revealed at the launching of a national mental health campaign.
“The ‘Kihineh?’ campaign aims to address the high levels of stigma attached to mental health and related issues, promote awareness and understanding of these issues, and create a more tolerant, nurturing, and compassionate community,” according to the president’s office. “The administration launched the one-year campaign in partnership with UNICEF Maldives.”
An ancient cache of cowry shells was discovered on Rinbudhoo. Workers found the shells while digging to lay water and sewerage pipes.
More than 84,000 shells were buried there, according to the council. Cowry shells were used as currency in Asia in premodern times.
A 40-year-old man caught during an attempted robbery of the Coastline company’s office was previously arrested 58 times for theft and drug-related offences, according to the criminal court’s remand order to hold him in custody for 45 days.
The carcass of a green sea turtle – an endangered species protected in the Maldives – was found on the uninhabited island of Madivaru near Rashdoo in Alif Alif Atoll.
The hunting and killing of turtles for its meat and eggs is common despite a longstanding ban.
