The family of Abdulla Rasheed – who died in controversial circumstances under Maldives Police Service custody gathered near the mortuary to protest being disallowed to see Rasheed’s body days after his passing.
Rasheed passed away in police custody after being arrested by the Drug Enforcement Department on Tuesday. Police has received a lot of backlash over their poor handling of the situation. As per police, Rasheed suffered a seizure after getting chest pains and was taken to Madaveli Health Centre for treatment. However, doctors at the Madaveli Health Center confirmed Rasheed was already dead when he was brought in.
The family has accused police of failing to provide timely assistance to Rasheed, and that police never showed the court order during the arrest either.
Speaking to the press near the mortuary, Rasheed’s mother Mariyam Ahmed said police searched their residence for 4 hours before arresting Rasheed. Mariyam Ahmed said Rasheed informed police that he had chest pains but police refused him assistance..
Moreover, Rasheed’s wife Aminath Leena said that police have refused to handover his body to the family. Leena said that the family is against conducting a post mortem on the body. Leena further said that Rasheed does not have a police record and he has never used drugs, and that police are still refusing to let the family see his body.
Rasheed’s Uncle Ahmed Shareef said that Home Minister Imran met with Rasheed’s mother and stated that an autopsy would be conducted even against the family’s wishes. As such, Shareef said that the family will not accept the body if an autopsy is conducted without their consent. The family has submitted a court case to stop the autopsy being conducted without their consent.
National Integrity Commission (NIC) has launched an investigation to determine if there was any foul play involved in Rasheed’s death. Rasheed’s sister Shamsunisa said that NIC and police have two very different stories. She said the family wants to hold a funeral as soon as possible.
