Malé, Maldives – The Prosecutor General’s Office (PG Office) today filed three charges under the Prevention of Terrorism Act (No. 32/2015) against Ismail Yafis (40), H. Lightnight for threatening to murder Speaker of the Maldives Parliament Mohamed Nasheed.
PG Office states that Yafis has publicized documents indicating allegiances to the Islamic State and in multiple occasions threatened to harm the Speaker since 2020.
The defendant currently in remand custody is charged under the Terrorism Act (No. 32/2015) with for the offences of,
- Supporting a terrorist act under Article 8(d) with reference to Article 8(a), punishable by 10 to 15 years.
- Making terror threats under Article 13(c) with reference to Article 13(a), punishable by 4 to 6 years.
- Supporting a terrorist organization under Article 16-1(b) with reference to Article 16-1(a), punishable by 3 to 5 years.
The maximum term of imprisoned faced by Yafis if sentenced to the highest degree is 26 years.
Yafis made a death threat against Speaker Mohamed Nasheed on Facebook stating that he will do what was done to Abu Jahl (who was killed) if the Speaker returns to the Maldives. The defendant has repeatedly threatened to kill Nasheed on multiple occasions, including at the criminal court during his remand hearing.
The IED explosion went off around 20:20 on 6 May leaving Speaker of Parliament, Mohamed Nasheed critically injured while he was getting into his car near his house, G. Kenereege, Malé City. In addition to him, 3 more people were also been reported to be injured from the explosion including the Speaker’s bodyguards and bystanders.
