Maldives Police Service announced on Thursday the police have taken statements from 11 people, and retrieved the victim’s phone from underwater in its investigation into the sexual assault on board a safari boat off the coast of suburban Hulhumale’.
The sexual assault was reported to the police at approximately 05:00 am on June 26.
The victim was identified as a 27-year-old woman of foreign nationality, while the suspects were identified as two Maldivian men of 39 years of age.
The two suspects were arrested from the Hulhumale’ jetty, which the police said was treated as part of the scene of the crime, but were later released from police custody citing “lack of sufficient grounds to keep them detained for the investigation at the moment”.
At a press conference on Thursday evening, Deputy Commissioner of Police Abdul Mannaan Yoosuf said investigators believe a far more serious crime, in addition to sexual assault, had taken place on board the boat, which had led to the victim jumping overboard.
To be updated…