Maldives ex-strongman Gayoom sentenced to 19 months in jail

MALE: A Maldives court on Thursday sentenced former strongman Maumoon Abdul Gayoom accused of plotting to overthrow the government to 19 months in prison for failing to cooperate with the police investigation. Gayoom, 80, who ruled the Indian Ocean archipelago state from 1978 to 2008, is the second former president to be jailed under President Yameen Abdul Gayoom's rule. He was arrested in February on charges of attempting to overthrow the government of Yameen, his half-brother. A court sentenced him to one year, seven months and six days in prison for failing to hand over his mobile phone to investigators.