One convicted in teen’s 2017 murder; others acquitted

The Criminal Court has convicted one person in connection to the murder of a young man in 2017, while the other two defendants were acquitted.

Moosa Ahmed Manik, 19, from V. Keyodhoo, was stabbed to death on September 23, 2017, near the Dhun’buri Mosque in the Maafannu district of Male’ City.

Three people were charged as accomplices in his murder:

• Ali Hassan, Mududhaasge, S. Hithadhoo
• Ahmed Ijad Mohamed, Dhebudhaaruge, M. Dhiggaru
• Mohamed Riyaz, Kaneerumaage, N. Lhohi

The court delivered its judgement on Wednesday.

It found that the prosecution proved only Ali Hassan’s complicity in the crime.

The judge said that while the prosecution established that all three defendants chased Moosa on their motorbikes and took the attackers to the scene of the crime, it failed to prove that Ijad and Riyaz had actively participated in the murder.

The court therefore acquitted Ijad and Riyaz, and sentenced Hassan, who was found guilty, to 15 years in prison.

However, Hasan has only eight years and six months left in his sentence, given the years he spent in detention was considered time served.

The police recovered a knife and two motorcycles used by the assailants from the scene.

The main suspect in the case, Sammah Ahmed Fathuhy, ADh. Maamigili, was charged with murder with intent using a sharp-edged weapon. However, Shammah, who was 18 at the time of the crime, received an acquittal on January 22.

In issuing the acquittal, the court noted that many of the eye witnesses in the case failed to show up in court, and that none of the witnesses who did appear testified to specifically seeing Sammah attack Moosa.

The court also noted that none of the DNA samples nor the fingerprints lifted from the scene of the crime matched Sammah.