Boat captain remanded in custody over fatal crash

The captain of the speedboat involved in an accident on Saturday, which resulted in the death of a Bangladeshi man fishing off ADh. Dhangethi, has been remanded in custody of the police.

The accident off Dhangethi was reported to the police at around 07:55 am on Saturday.

The Bangladeshi man killed in the accident was part of the crew of the fishing boat ‘Twins’, registered to F. Feeali.

According to the Dhangethi Council, the boat had been travelling with a crew of six people; the deceased and four other Bangladeshi nationals, and a Maldivian man – the captain.

The man had been in the waters fishing for grouper when he was hit by a speedboat travelling in the area.

He was reported to have died instantly.

The captain of the speedboat, identified only as a Maldivian male, was arrested and presented before the court for his remand hearing the same day.

A police spokesperson said on Sunday that court remanded him custody of the police for 15 days.

The owner of the boat, Ghassan Mohamed told Sun that the men went into the waters to catch grouper after putting up flags, warning other vessels not to travel in the area.

This claim is supported by a video of the immediate aftermath of the incident, which showed two orange flags put up on floating buoys near the boat.

According to Ghassan, the rest of the crew had jumped into the water and grabbed the man, as soon as the speedboat crashed into him.

“He was already deceased when he was brought up,” said Ghassan.

The body of the deceased was taken to the Dhangethi Health Center.

According to the Dhangethi Council, the speedboat involved in the crash is a privately-owned boat which ferries passengers between Male’ City and ADh. Maamigili.

The case is under investigation by the police.