Murrath: Confessed to murder following intimidation by police

Ahmed Murrath, M. Masroora, Malé, has said that he confessed to the murder of lawyer Ahmed Najeeb at the Criminal Court trial following intimidation by the police.

Murrath said at a hearing of the appeal case in High Court today, that his statements at Criminal Court had been dictated to him by the police.

He said that he confessed to the murder after police threatened to arrest his mother, and requested the court to summon the police officers for questioning.

Murrath has requested the court to summon the police at an earlier hearing as well, following which the judge said that the request would be investigated and police would be summoned if deemed necessary by the judges bench.

In court today, the state requested the opportunity to respond to Murrath’s claims.

Adjourning the trial, the judge announced that the next hearing would be the final one for this case, and requested both sides to present all their statements then.

Najeeb was found murdered on 1 July 2012.

Criminal Court has found Murrath and his former girlfriend Fathimath Hana guilty of the murder, and sentenced them to death.

The sentence has been appealed in High Court by both Murrath and Hana.

Confessing to the crime at a hearing at Criminal Court, Murrath said that he tied Najeeb to a chair, tied his arms and legs, and put tape over his mouth at M. Masroora on the night of 1 July 2012. Murrath said that he got upset when Najeeb refused to quiet down and murdered him by stabbing him in the neck with a four-inch knife.