Probe underway into misappropriation of FAM funds by club officials

The Maldives Police Service (MPS) has launched an investigation into the alleged misappropriation of club subsidies distributed by the Football Association of Maldives (FAM). According to authorities, the funds that were intended for football clubs were instead deposited into the personal accounts of club officials and companies in which they hold shares.

This was revealed in a message shared by the police institution with media on Tuesday.

The message reads that the investigation into the alleged misuse of funds received by FAM from foreign parties and money laundering activities is still ongoing.

The message shared by the police with the media also highlighted that this includes the case of suspected misappropriation of FAM funds by depositing them into accounts of a company in which FAM's former president, Bassam Adeel Jaleel, has shares, and into accounts of individuals who were working at FAM at the time.

Further, the message revealed that upon discovering the misappropriation of funds given as subsidies to clubs by club officials, an investigation into the matter has since been initiated.

In addition to the charges filed against Bassam, the Prosecutor General's Office has sought the recovery of USD 1.2 million in compensation for losses allegedly incurred by the Football Association of Maldives (FAM) due to his misappropriation of funds.

The Prosecutor General (PG) had previously requested to press charges against FAM's former president, Bassam, in the misappropriation case of FAM.

FAM began giving subsidies to clubs under the pretext of improving the financial situation of the clubs. FAM started distributing these subsidies after the government stopped providing funds to clubs.