Four suspects have been arrested in connection with the sudden and unexplained deaths of a 22-year-old man and an 18-year-old woman in Hulhumalé.
Ahmed Haameen, from the island of Thimarafushi in Thaa atoll, and Fathmath Sama, from the capital Malé, were pronounced dead on arrival at the Hulhumalé hospital around 8:30 pm on Thursday night, a hospital official confirmed.
Superintendent Ahmed Shifan said the two deaths were related.
“We have raided several places in Hulhumalé and party drugs were found from one place. A serious investigation is ongoing due to suspicious links to drugs,” the police spokesman told the Maldives Independent.
The two youth were buried Friday evening after the police took samples for forensic testing.
The four suspects, three men and a woman, were arrested late Thursday night and the criminal court on Friday ordered their detention for 15 days.
At the remand hearing, the police raised 12 charges against the suspects, including the trafficking, peddling, dealing and use of cannabis and diamorphine (heroin) as well as attempted suicide and forcing, encouraging and assisting suicide.
According to local media, the deaths occurred while a group of friends were having fun at the Hulhumalé beach after renting a guesthouse room for a birthday party later that night.
A 21-year-old man was also reportedly taken to the hospital along with Haameen. He was unable to speak but was later taken into police custody after he recovered from the shock.
Initial reports suggested that Sama had drowned and that Haameen died after complaining of chest pains following a football match. But the media’s focus later shifted to suspected overdose or complications from using party drugs.
Home Minister Azleen Ahmed told Sun Online that the police have discovered that a new and dangerous party drug is being sold in the Maldives. It could be dangerous in lethal doses, he said.
Heroin and hashish oil are the most commonly used drugs in the Maldives, but other drugs such as LSD, ecstasy, and synthetic drugs have been found in recent years.
In March, Ali Ahmed ‘Ayya,’ a local actor, was found dead in a house in the Henveiru ward of Male’ after a drug overdose. Prior to his death, he was charged with smuggling drugs into the Maldives.
In October last year, a Bangladeshi man was caught smuggling a new synthetic drug called “flakka” in a joint operation conducted by the police and the Maldives Customs Service. It was the first time flakka was discovered in the Maldives.
According to a 2012 UN report, there are 7,496 drug addicts in the Maldives. However, critics say the real figure is likely to be much higher.
Photo from Sun Online
