Abdulla Ibrahim (Abucha), of S. Hithadhoo, whom police accuse of smuggling drugs into Addu City and running one of the largest drug trafficking operations there, has been re-arrested after the decision to release him on parole was reversed.
Home Minister Ali Ihusaan announced Abucha's arrest at a press conference held at the President's Office. The minister said the Parole Board had decided on 26 September to release him under certain conditions. However, that decision has since been reviewed, and work is now under way to return him to jail.
Minister Ihusaan said the review found that important matters the law requires to be considered had not been properly assessed in the Parole Board's decision. The board has been asked to reconsider the decision, and the six board members who took part in it have been removed from their posts.
Abucha was sentenced to 25 years in prison in a case in which he was caught with 61 kilograms of diamorphine and 17.97 kilograms of methamphetamine racemate during a special operation at sea in October 2020. It was one of the largest drug operations ever carried out by the Maldives Police Service, and a total of 17 people were arrested along with him at the time. Following the trial, the Criminal Court sentenced him on 19 May last year.
Parole is an opportunity provided by law for a convict serving a prison sentence to be released into the community under specific conditions before the sentence ends. However, if those conditions are breached, or if the relevant authorities reverse the decision, the person must return to jail to serve the remainder of the sentence.
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