Additional suspect arrested over Addu gang fights remanded pending trial’s end

An additional suspect who has been arrested over the gang fights in Addu City’s Hithadhoo district has been remanded in custody pending the outcome of his trial.

Police, in a message to the media, identified the suspect as a 29-year-old man who was arrested on Thursday.

Hithadhoo Magistrate Court has remanded him in custody pending the outcome of his trial, they added.

This edges up the number of arrests made in connection to two gang fights in Hithadhoo to 12 of which one has been released from custody as the police believed no further reason to keep the suspect in custody.

The fight on last Friday left a 30-year-old man in serious condition with multiple stab wounds. He was initially treated at the Addu Equatorial Hospital before being moved to the ICU of Indhira Gandhi Memorial Hospital (IGMH) in Male’ City.

Meanwhile, the second stabbing was reported to police at around 03:30 pm Sunday. It left a 20-year-old man with stab wounds in his stomach and shoulder.

The remaining 10 suspects have been remanded in custody pending the outcome of their trial.

Gang-related violence has also been recently reported in Male’ City – coming after months of relative calm. This has prompted the police to reinforce security in both Male’ and Addu.