Third suspect in Naeema’s murder remanded for 30 days

The Criminal Court has ordered 30-day remand for a third suspect arrested in the murder of a middle-aged woman, found killed in her home in Noonu Manadhoo last April.

Naeema Moosa, 62, was found stabbed to death in her bedroom at around 06:30 pm April 7.

A third suspect was arrested in the case was arrested from Male’ City on Sunday night. He was presented before the Criminal Court for his remand hearing Monday morning.

The court remanded him in custody of the police for 30 days.

Sun is able to confirm the identity of the third suspect as 21-year-old Hassan Favaaz. He, like the other two suspects in the case, is from Manadhoo. However, he resides in Male’. He is the owner of the car the other two suspects drove in the island.

A major break in the case hadn’t come until over a month after Naeema was found killed in her home.

On Friday, Commissioner of Police Mohamed Hameed announced the police have made two arrests in the case, and have recovered two weapons used in the murder, along with the clothes the killers were wearing.

The two suspects who were arrested earlier are both young men from Manadhoo in their early 20s.

They were described by locals as “known drug addicts.”

One of the suspects, Ahzam Abdul Shakoor, 23, confessed to the crime during interrogation.

He had previously resided in Male’, where he had reportedly joined a criminal gang, before moving back to Manadhoo.

Ahzam was initially arrested for possession of drugs based on a tip.

The police found the weapons used in the murder and the clothes the killers were wearing based on Azham’s confession. Officers found the burnt pieces of clothing buried in a ditch.

Ahzam’s statement at court revealed the police arrested the second suspect, a 20-year-old man, on Friday night.

He was described by locals as a known associate of Ahzams and a fellow drug addict.

A street sweeper employed by the local council, Naeema had lived alone in her home. She was last seen on April 5th, and was report missing by her family on April 7th. The police had to break open her bedroom door, and found her lying dead on the floor in a pool of blood.