Abbas concerned over delays in Nasheed blast trial

Special representative of President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih, Abbas Faiz, has lauded the efforts of the police and the Prosecutor General's (PG) Office to carry out the investigation into the May 6, 2021, attack on Parliament Speaker Mohamed Nasheed, but expressed concern over the delay in the trial.

At a press conference with Prosecutor General (PG) Hussain Shameem at the President's Office on Tuesday, Abbas briefed the media on the progress of the investigations and trials in the case since his appointment on June 1,

Abbas mainly noted that the work being done by the police and the prosecutor's office is good. He also asked the present government and the new government of Dr Mohammed Muizzu to give priority to cooperate with the two agencies to carry out the work.

However, he said he had identified the issue of delays in trials as a major concern and had submitted measures to the relevant agencies including the Judicial Service Commission (JSC) to resolve the issue.

Abbas spoke about some of the allegations since the case surfaced and the information the investigation has gained about them.

He mentioned:

Abbas' main concern with the two-part investigation, which is being conducted to find the perpetrators and those behind the attack, has been the failure to find the people behind it. He said the police and relevant agencies should pay attention to the investigation.

Abbas said on Tuesday that special investigations have been conducted into the matter and the police have done a good job.

He said that the police have done a good job in that regard. He added that there is no evidence that the attack was funded from outside the country or by anyone else. The investigation found that the cost of the attack came from the personal pockets of those already accused in this case, Abbas said.

However, given the nature of the case, he still believes that it may have been funded by someone behind the scenes, he said. He said he was looking at the possibility of evidence in the case in the future.

Mr. Faiz commended the joint efforts of the police and the Prosecutor General's office in obtaining the information needed for the investigation and strong evidence against the accused and doing what was necessary to substantiate the charges against them.

He noted that the investigation team and the Prosecutor General's office have been able to identify and complement the additional assistance and training required by experts from abroad. Abbas said that, as a result, the case currently being tried in connection with the May 6 attack was presented with strong evidence.

Although the police and Prosecutor General's office have worked hard on the case and charged the accused with strong evidence, Abbas said he was worried about the bitter consequences as the case was being delayed in the Criminal Court.

He said the hearings were not being held with sufficient speed due to the space constraints faced by the Criminal Court at present. However, he noted that this was not a valid reason to delay the trial of a major case in the public interest.

Another reason Abbas noted why it was important to conduct this trial at a reasonable speed is that the prosecutor's office and the police have done a very thorough job. After such good, professional work, the agencies [police and Prosecutor General's Office] will want a result, Abbas said.

He noted that if the trials were conducted properly, the charges against the accused would be proved based on the evidence gathered by the police and the prosecutor's office.