The High Court has overturned Criminal Court’s ruling sentencing former vice president Ahmed Adeeb to 15 years in jail over the explosion aboard the presidential speedboat in 2015,.
The Court also ordered the Criminal Court to conduct a retrial of the case.
While Judge Mohamed Niyaz presiding over the bench was of the opinion that Adeeb should be jailed until the end of his trial, the two remaining judges Sujau Usman and Hussain Shaheed were of the opinion that Adeeb should be detained for 15 days only. Therefore, the court ordered to detain the former VP at a remand jail for a period of 15 days, during which the Prosecutor General's Office will be allowed to file a petition at the Criminal Court regarding his detainment.
The 15-year prison sentence issued by Criminal Court is the longest sentence that Adeeb is currently serving.
In their ruling, the High Court referred to the controversial February 1 Supreme Court order, stating that the ruling and the terror charges that followed were politically motivated and violated the rights assured by the Maldivian constitution and criminal procedural laws. While a large part of the Supreme Court ruling has already been dismissed, Adeeb’s case warrants a retrial due to the similar nature of the case, it further said.
Two of Adeeb’s bodyguards were sentenced to 10 years in prison over the 2015 explosion. The High Court has also ordered a retrial of this case.
Former Vice President Ahmed Adeeb
