Man dies while in police detention on drug charges

A Maldivian man has died while in Police custody.

The man was arrested for a drug related offence last Friday and was being held under Police custody in Male'.

The man has been identified as Ahmed Afrah, 48, G. Zamia.

Afrah was being held at Atholhu Vehi after the Criminal Court placed him in remand in custody for 30 days yesterday afternoon at around 1:36pm.

In a message sent to media today, Police said that Afrah was found fallen unconscious in his cell at 5:50am today.

Having observed that he was unconscious and motionless, Police took him to Indira Gandhi Memorial Hospital, where he was pronounced dead.

According to the remand order, Afrah was being held due to drug addiction and the urgent need for treatment.

Afrah also had a prior criminal record. The remand order said that urine tests conducted on the day of arrest showed Afrah to be positive for various types of narcotics.

Police said that information regarding Afrah's death has been shared with the Human Rights Commission of Maldives and National Integrity Commission. Further, Police's Professional Standards Command is also conducting an internal investigation.