A visiting minister has met with the Sri Lankan national jailed over an alleged sniper plot to kill the Maldives president.
The 24-year-old Sri Lankan, Lahiru Madushanka, was arrested on October 24, 2015 on suspicion that he was a sniper hired to assassinate former president Abdulla Yameen Abdul Gayoom.
Sri Lanka's minister of provincial councils and local government, Faiszer Musthapha who is in Maldives to attend the inauguration of the archipelago's new president Ibrahim Mohamed Solih had met with Madushanka on Monday at the country's main prison in Maafushi island.
In addition to Madhushanka, former vice president Ahmed Adheeb Abdul Ghafoor who is already serving 33 in prison over two separate counts of terrorism, two locals Fazeel Hameed and Ishaag Hussain have been charged in the case.
Adheeb, Fazeel and Madhushanka have been charged with conspiracy to murder while Ishaag has been charged as an accessory.
Prosecutors had said Adheeb and Fazeel had conspired to hire a sniper to assassinate president Abdulla Yameen Abdul Gayoom.
Madhushanka had accepted the contract and flown into the Maldives to carry out the assassination, the charges said.
According to prosecutors Ishaag was the mediator who delivered the contract payment.
However, Madhushanka's family had denied the allegations insisting that her went to the Maldives seeking employment but did not get to meet the contact person there. After few days he has decided to return to Sri Lanka and the Maldivian authorities arrested him at the airport.
Though the trial has been underway, the last hearing was held in September 2016 as the trial has stalled.
Amnesty has called on the Maldives government to release Lahiru unless there is sufficient credible and admissible evidence against him adding that he must be provided with frequent access to a lawyer, medical care and right to freedom of religion in accordance with local and international law.
