Court gives final chance to produce witnesses in murder trial
Five witnesses were listed to testify for the defence, but only one appeared in court.
The Criminal Court on Sunday granted a final opportunity to present defence witnesses in the trial of Marvin SY Vargas, who is charged with the murder of his wife, Mary Grace Oned Pineda, a Filipino nurse who worked at Indira Gandhi Memorial Hospital.
The court has already recorded the testimony of the co-accused, Haleemath Lamha Abdul Rahman. Sunday’s hearing was scheduled to hear evidence from witnesses called by Vargas.
Five witnesses were listed to testify for the defence, but only one appeared in court. The remaining four witnesses, who are Filipino nationals residing in the Maldives, did not attend despite being summoned.
Vargas’s lawyer, Ismail Mohamed, told the court that attempts to contact the remaining witnesses had failed.
He said Vargas’s mother and friends had also tried to reach the witnesses but had not received any response. He said the witnesses had not appeared despite court summons.
The court scheduled another hearing later this week to allow a final opportunity to produce the witnesses. The court said that if the witnesses do not appear on that date, the case will proceed without their testimony.
The witness who appeared told the court that he knew Vargas as a Filipino living in the Maldives and described him as a good person. He said he had no knowledge of Vargas’s personal life.
According to the prosecution, Mary Grace Oned Pineda was killed on 19 October 2021 by being assaulted on the head and neck and suffocated.
Vargas is charged with knowingly causing the death of another person.
Haleemath Lamha Abdul Rahman, an IGMH nurse alleged to have been in a relationship with Vargas, is charged with knowingly participating in the murder. The basic penalty for this charge is six years in prison.
Lamha also faces additional charges, including unauthorised possession of another person’s property and carrying out an act without required permission. Each of these offences carries a basic sentence of two months and 12 days.
The prosecution alleges that between 12:00 pm and 12:49 pm on 19 October 2021, Lamha assisted in the killing of Pineda inside a residence on the first floor of a building.
The prosecution said Lamha took part in the plan to kill Pineda and facilitated the act carried out by Vargas.
If convicted, both defendants face a minimum sentence of 10 years in prison.
