A police officer was seriously injured early on Saturday when a motorcycle ridden at more than 100 kilometres an hour struck a barricade at a vehicle checkpoint on the Sinamalé Bridge highway and then hit him.
The officer was on duty at the checkpoint on the Malé to Hulhumalé side of the highway at about 4:30am. He is being treated at ADK Hospital, where police described his injuries as serious.
Police said the rider lost control while travelling at speed from Malé towards Hulhumalé. The rider was not seriously hurt, and other officers on duty stopped the motorcycle.
Four people have been arrested: the two who were on the motorcycle, and two others found with a second motorcycle linked to the incident. Police said preliminary urine tests on all four returned positive for drugs.
The Criminal Court remanded all four for five days. The period was kept short because the four asked for the opportunity to arrange legal representation.
Commissioner of Police Ahmed Mohamed said the crash appeared to be deliberate. He described it as an intentional act carried out to obstruct the special operation the police are running against dangerous road users, and said it was aimed at psychologically weakening the officers involved in that work and forcing them back.
He said the operation would continue without interruption, and that the government would strengthen legal measures against such acts under existing laws.
The operation began as accidents in the Malé area rose, and as a new land transport law took effect on 1 October giving police the power to impose substantially larger fines.
Police statistics show 2,379 road accidents have been reported so far this year, 96 of them in October. Accidents are the second most common type of case recorded in 2026, behind theft-related offences at 2,753. Police have received 9,912 cases in total this year.
Parliament recently decided to summon police to answer questions about the rise in accidents.