Remand period for sniper extended again

Remand period for Sri Lankan sniper who was allegedly hired by Maldivians to assassinate Maldivian President Abdulla Yameen has been extended again.

24-year-old Lahir Madhushanka was arrested on October 24, 2015.

Meanwhile, the three Maldivians arrested for allegedly hiring Lahir have been released.

Co-chair of National Inquiry Commission, Home Minister Umar Naseer said that rumors that Lahir was not a sniper, but someone who came to Maldives to buy dried tuna was false.

Umar said that police were building a very strong case around the sniper.

Lahir’s family has expressed concern over his arrest and have started efforts to urge his release.

Maldivian High Commissioner to Sri Lanka, Zahiya Zareer has said that Maldivian government had shared details of Lahir’s arrest with Sri Lankan government.

Speaking in a press conference in Colombo, Legal Affairs Minister for President’s Officer, Aishath Azima Shukoor insisted that Lahir was being kept under arrest because authorities had enough evidence against him.

Lahir was arrested in a particularly politically tremulous period in Maldives, with weapons being found in the lagoon of B. Hibalhidhoo – an uninhabited island being converted into a tourist resort, bomb threats in Male’ City and explosion onboard presidential speedboat Finifenmaa.

Umar said that there was a link between explosive used onboard Finifenmaa and the weapons found in Hibalhidhoo. And that the issue was therefore included in Finifenmaa case.