The presidential commission charged with conducting an inquiry into the ninth-floor fall of a young woman from a building in Male’ in April has questioned 21-year-old Raudh Ahmed Zilal, who was with her moments before her fall.
21-year-old Mariyam Yumnu was found injured on the rooftop of a warehouse in the Henveiru district at around 07:30 am on April 18. According to the police, their investigation uncovered that she fell from a skylight in the ninth-floor stairwell of the adjacent building, H. Fentenoy, but that there was no evidence of foul play – a claim that, according to her family, Yumnu now disputes.
Before her fall, Yumnu had been part of a group of at least nine individuals who were at Ma. Maandhooge Dhekunuge – the family residence of Transport Minister Mohamed Ameen - for a party, where they are believed to have possibly consumed drugs and alcohol.
The family links between the persons of interest in Yumnu’s fall and influential figures, including Ameen, and the seemingly sluggish investigation into the case has sparked allegations of a police coverup and serial protests in the Maldivian capital.
On April 27, President Dr. Mohamed Muizzu appointed a presidential commission to conduct an inquiry into the case; a five-member commission headed by Dr. Mohamed Munavvar.
In a post on X, the inquiry commission said they questioned Raudh – who is currently being held at the Dhoonidhoo Custodial Jail – on Monday.
The Commission met with Raud Ahmed Zilal today for questioning regarding the incident under inquiry.
— Inquiry Commission (@InquiryCom) May 12, 2025
The commission did not say if Raudh cooperated.
The questioning of Raudh comes a day after the commission said that members had “visited locations relevant to the investigation, met with officials of some relevant authorities and interviewed several persons” since its inception.
But the commission did not specify who the persons were.
The eight people who were with Mariyam Yumnu before she fell from a building in Male' on April 18, 2025.
The police had initially refused to name anyone else except for Yumnu. It wasn’t until six days later – on April 24 – that the police finally named eight people who had been with Yumnu in the party as persons of interest; Raudh Ahmed Zilal, 21; Izdhiyaan Mohamed Maumoon, 28; Aishath Layaaly Iqbal, 22; Yoosuf Ahmed Akram, 22; Yoosuf Yassar Abdul Ghafoor, 28; Aminath Junaina Jamsheed, 24; Hussain Hamees Ali, 28; and Ijaz Jaiz, 24.
Meanwhile, the house where the group held the party was confirmed as the family residence of Ameen, who admitted that two of his nephews – Izdhiyaan and Yoosuf Ahmed Akram - were among the group of individuals involved, but denied he knew anything about what he described as the “gathering.”
The same day, the police arrested Raudh, who had been with Yumnu in the last moments before her fall, for lack of cooperation. They also filed for court warrants to search the other two residences that Yumnu had been in before she went to Fentenoy – Ma. Maandhooge Dhekunu and G. Kashiveli.
The case of Yumnu, who spent nearly three hours on the rooftop of a warehouse before a neighbor saw her and alerted the authorities, has sparked serial protests in Male’.
The protestors, a vast majority of them young men and women, have been demanding justice for her, and the resignation of top government and police officials over the alleged coverup, including Ameen and Home Minister Ali Ihusan.
Youths protest for a third straight night demanding justice for Mariyam Yumnu on April 25, 2025. (Sun Photo/Hussain Hafiz)
The police have said that both Yumnu and Raudh were heavily intoxicated at the time, and had both tested positive for narcotics. Clips of CCTV footage shared by police show Yumnu appeared to have trouble walking, and even fell down on the ground at one point.
The court order issued on April 25 for Raudh’s initial remand extension shows investigators believe Yumnu and Raudh had argued before she fell – something the police hadn’t mentioned in two press briefings held in the wake of the incident.
It also says that when questioned shortly after Yumnu’s fall, Raudh had responded with “I don’t know where she is” and “I think she fell.”
Subsequent remand hearings were held behind closed doors at the request of the police.
Raudh’s remand was extended by another five days on Saturday.
The then-Commissioner of Police Ibrahim Shujau bowed under pressure and tendered his resignation on April 26, following four straight nights of protest, and was replaced with Ismail Naveen as acting CP.
Yumnu, who sustained serious injuries in the fall including multiple fractures, was flown to a hospital in Malaysia.
In a TV interview last week, her sister said that Yumnu had told the family that she did not jump from the building but was pushed. She also told her family that she was familiar with Fentenoy, and was invited to visit the residence by Yassar. She also said that there were four other people there with Raudh and herself.
The family has expressed lack of faith in getting any justice in the case.