Hearing in Yameen Rasheed’s murder scheduled for tomorrow

A new hearing in 2017 murder of blogger and activist Yameen Rasheed has been scheduled for tomorrow following a six-month hiatus.

Yameen Rasheed, 29, a blogger and rights activist, was stabbed to death in the stairwell of his residence in Male’ City, M. Spatula, on April 23, 2017.

Six individuals were originally charged with stabbing Yameen to death:

• Ismail Haisham Rasheed (H. Annaarumaage, Male')  
• Ahmed Zihan Ismail (Lot 11399, Hulhumale')  
• Mohamed Dhifran (Sindbadge, G.Dh. Gaddhoo)  
• Hassan Shifaz (M. Kudhehige, Male')  
• Ismail Rasheed (M. Thaaif, Male')  
• Hussein Ziyad (East, M. Kolhufushi)

In January 2022, the Criminal Court convicted Haisham and Zihan and sentenced them to life imprisonment, while the remaining four were acquitted.

Both convicts appealed to the High Court, which overturned the verdict and ordered a retrial. On December 31, the High Court acquitted the pair. However, on the same day, the Prosecutor General’s Office requested the Criminal Court to rule on their remand status. The court subsequently ordered Haisham and Zihan to remain in custody pending trial.

In accordance with the High Court’s ruling, the retrial commenced in February this year. The case is being heard by a three-judge bench comprising Judge Ibrahim Ihsan, Judge Mohamed Misbah, and Judge Ali Nadeem. Although most cases before the Criminal Court are heard by a single judge, certain cases have historically been assigned to a bench.

The second hearing of the retrial is scheduled for this Saturday and will be livestreamed online. 

Investigations conducted by the Maldives Police Service and the Presidential Commission on Deaths and Disappearances concluded that the motive behind Yameen Rasheed’s murder was linked to religious extremist ideologies and related disputes.