High Court bars convicted murderer from contacting victim’s family
The prosecution said Adham killed Gasim while attempting to rob him of money.
The High Court on Tuesday ordered convicted murderer Adham Mohamed not to contact the family of taxi driver Gasim Hassan, whom he killed in 2019.
Gasim was found stabbed to death in Hulhumalé on the night of 4 December 2019. The prosecution charged Adham Mohamed, of Boduhiyaage/Lh. Hinnavaru, with intentional homicide using a sharp object. Police arrested him on 20 December 2019 while he was on the run.
The prosecution said Adham killed Gasim while attempting to rob him of money.
Three years after Gasim’s death, the Criminal Court convicted Adham and sentenced him to death in March last year. The prosecution appealed the verdict to the High Court as the case involved murder.
At the High Court hearing on Tuesday, the prosecution told the court that Gasim’s family had reported attempts by Adham’s lawyer to communicate with them. Public Prosecutor Ahmed Naufal told the court that all five heirs of Gasim had asked not to be approached by anyone connected to the appellant.
“All five heirs of [Gasim] have informed the prosecution that they have nothing further to say to the appellant in this case and have asked not to be approached by anyone connected with the appellant,” he said.
After seeking clarification, the three-judge bench ordered Adham not to contact Gasim’s family.
During the conviction hearing at the Criminal Court, Adham asked for forgiveness. However, all five heirs requested the death penalty.
At Tuesday’s High Court hearing, Adham pleaded guilty through his lawyer. He had previously entered a guilty plea in the lower court but later withdrew it.
In its summary of the sentence, the Criminal Court stated that Adham selected a taxi with the intention of robbing and killing the driver. The court said he sharpened a knife before entering the vehicle and directed Gasim to drive to a dark and uninhabited road. Gasim was stabbed in the neck with intent to kill and was stabbed again when he attempted to resist. Adham attempted to flee while Gasim called for help.
Medical evidence presented to the court stated that Gasim’s life could have been saved if he had received immediate treatment. The court said leaving him in a remote location while he sought help constituted deliberate killing.
The court also noted that despite Adham claiming he did not intend to kill Gasim, he was aware that Gasim was bleeding heavily. The conviction was supported by fingerprint evidence and CCTV footage.
