The High Court has accepted a petition seeking to declare Addu City’s “Scoop” an organised criminal group under the Anti-Gang Crimes Act.

The case was submitted to the High Court on January 15 by the Prosecutor General’s Office, following a request from the Maldives Police Service. The Prosecutor General’s Office stated that, after reviewing evidence presented by police, the group was found to meet the legal criteria of an organised criminal group and to be actively involved in criminal activities.

The petition requests the court to officially declare the group known as “Scoop”, “Scoop Kanthi”, or “SKP” as an organised criminal group, and to recognise nine identified individuals as members of the group.

The High Court has also requested the Addu City Council to instruct the Commissioner of Sports to dissolve SKP Sports Club, which is believed to be linked to the group, and to remove graffiti bearing the names “Scoop” and “SKP” from public walls.

This is the second case of its kind submitted by the Maldives Police Service to the Prosecutor General’s Office since the Anti-Gang Crimes Act came into force. The Prosecutor General’s Office reviewed the proposal and returned it to the police for further investigation before submitting it to the court.