One arrested in machete-armed gang fight released

One of the suspects arrested Sunday in connection to a fight between two rival gangs in Male’ City over the weekend has been released by the court.

The fight, in which assailants were armed with machetes, broke out in Majeedhee Magu, outside the Dinemore restaurant, at around 11:25 pm Friday.

The fight was broken up by police, who managed to catch one of the suspects.

The rest of the suspects fled.

Two of the suspects fled on foot, leaving behind their motorbikes.

One of the suspects also left behind a machete.

One of the suspects believed to have left behind his motorbike was arrested by the police Sunday. The suspect, identified as a 22-year-old male, was presented before the Criminal Court on Monday.

Despite the assertion by the police that he had been possession of a sharp-edged weapon during the fight, the court released him from police custody citing lack of evidence.

Court documents show the police submitted the incident report and statement from one of the attending officers as evidence.

However, the court found the incident report showed only that the suspect left his motorbike behind, and did not have any evidence to give weight to the suspicion he had been involved in the fight or had been in possession of a sharp-edged weapon.

The court therefore ordered his release due to lack of evidence.

Meanwhile, the suspect arrested from the scene – Mohamed Mafaz Hussain Saleem, 25, G. Sharaz, K. Male’, has been remanded in custody of the police for 15 days.

Mafaz was one of the men charged with the 2017 murder of Nadheem Abdul Raheem (Nadey), 24, HA. Thakandhoo. However, he was acquitted after a trial that lasted six years in November 2022.