Maldivian man arrested over murder of Bangladeshi

A 33-year-old Maldivian man has been arrested on suspicion of murdering an expatriate on the island of Himmafushi in Kaafu atoll.

The 38-year-old Bangladeshi man was found dead Saturday in the water bottling plant where he was employed. According to local media reports, the suspect was close to the manager of the bottling plant operated by Life Beverages Pvt Ltd.

A spokesperson for Life Beverages declined to comment citing the ongoing police investigation.

The suspect was arrested on Wednesday and remanded on the following day by the Himmafushi magistrate court to police custody for the duration of the murder trial.

Earlier this year, a 27-year-old Bangladeshi man, identified as Hassanullah by local media, was found dead on the island of Fonadhoo in Laamu atoll.

Three expatriates suspects were arrested in early April. It is unclear if charges have been raised.

In June 2015, a Bangladeshi undocumented worker was discovered dead with severe head injuries at an uninhabited house on the island of Gan in Laamu atoll, which is connected by a causeway to Fonadhoo.

A month later, a Maldivian man was charged with murder.

The murder victim, identified only as Bassan, was the third migrant worker killed in 2015, prompting expatriates to plan a protest in Malé.

But the demonstration was called off after the department of immigration threatened to cancel visas and take action against the employers of the migrant workers participating in the protest.

Some 130,000 migrant workers are believed to reside in the Maldives, including 60,000 undocumented workers, the majority of whom are Bangladeshi and Indian men working in the construction sector.