Liberal blogger and journalist Yameen Rasheed was stabbed to death in the stairwell of his apartment building in the Maldivian capital of Malé in the early morning of April 23, 2017. He reportedly suffered over 30 stab wounds to his face, neck and chest. Associates of Rasheed accused police of having failed to adequately respond to multiple past death threats against him. In August 2017, Maldivian authorities identified three individuals who they said were “actively involved” in the murder, including two who allegedly carried it out and a third who acted as a lookout. Authorities said the suspects were religious extremists who had no formal Islamic education but were motivated by what they deemed to be Rameen’s “sacrilege”.