Maldives police have detained two serving ministers, Shamnaz Saleem and Adam Rameez, for allegedly using black magic against President Mohamed Muizzu, according to local media reports on Thursday.
The arrests were first reported by local media outlets citing the police. The police, however, declined to comment on the details surrounding the arrests or the alleged use of black magic.
According to news portal Sun.mv, Shamnaz, along with two other individuals, was arrested on Sunday. All three were remanded in custody for seven days. Shamnaz was subsequently suspended from her post as State Minister at the Environment Ministry on Wednesday. Rameez, a minister at the President’s Office, was also suspended on Thursday.
Prior to their arrests, Shamnaz and Rameez had worked alongside President Muizzu as members of the Male City Council, when Muizzu was the mayor. Following Muizzu’s inauguration as president in November 2022, Shamnaz was appointed as a state minister at Muliaage, the president’s official house, before being transferred to the Environment Ministry.
Sun.mv further reported that Rameez, known as a close aide of Muizzu during his time at the Male City Council, has been out of the public eye for the past five months.
Neither the Maldives government nor the President’s office has issued any official statement regarding the arrests and allegations.
