Nizam convicted of Litton's murder; prosecution seeks 25 years

The Criminal Court has found Mohamed Nizam guilty of murdering Bangladeshi national Mohamed Litton, who went missing from the oil tanker Hedhey Kuri in 2012.

Litton, 35, disappeared on December 28, 2012 while working aboard the tanker. Prosecutors said Nizam, Manaaru, GDh. Thinadhoo, who was travelling with him on the vessel, threw him into the sea without his knowledge, causing his death. Nizam was charged with intentional homicide along with two additional offences.

This is the first time in the Maldives that a murder charge has been pursued in a case involving a missing person.

Nizam, who was 45 when he was arrested, had previously been convicted of dealing in dimorphine and theft, and had already served sentences for those offences.

In Tuesday’s judgment, the court noted that Litton was unlikely to have survived due to the location where he was thrown overboard. The judge also highlighted that Nizam’s hostility towards Litton had been established, and that Nizam admitted in his investigative statement to throwing him into the sea.

However, the court found that the evidence did not meet the threshold required to prove intentional homicide under Islamic Sharia. Instead, the judge ruled that Nizam was guilty of death caused by a reckless act against human life under the Penal Code.

Sentencing has not yet been delivered. The prosecution has requested a 25‑year prison term.