Court orders man to pay MVR 650,000 to PNC activist Shaheeb, currently serving a life sentence

The Civil Court has ordered an individual from Sh. Foakaidhoo to pay MVR 650,000 to Shaheeb Ibrahim (Lighthouse, Ga. Villingili), a PNC activist currently serving a life sentence for a major drug trafficking conviction.

This sum is being sought from Shaheeb following a dispute arising from a contractual agreement.

The Civil Court on Tuesday ordered Ahmed Ashfaq of Asseyri, Sh. Foakaidhoo, to repay 650,000 Rufiyaa to Shaheeb Ibrahim within three months. The ruling follows a lawsuit filed by Shaheeb to recover the funds, which he reportedly provided to Ashfaq in 2019.

In this case, Shaheeb requested the court to order Ashfaq to pay a total of approximately two million Rufiyaa. This claim included the principal amount of 650,000 Rufiyaa, along with a monthly penalty of 65,000 Rufiyaa for the duration the payment remained outstanding. However, the presiding judge, Fayyaz Shatir, excluded the penalty component in his ruling. The judge ordered Ashfaq to pay only the original sum of 650,000 Rufiyaa that Shaheeb had provided.

While the Civil Court has ordered this payment to be made to Shaheeb, he is currently serving a 50-year prison sentence. This follows his conviction in connection with the seizure of 130 kilograms of narcotics from a fishing vessel in the Hulhumale' lagoon in 2020. In addition to the custodial sentence, the Criminal Court last September ordered Shaheeb to pay a fine of MVR 10 million to the state. However, that conviction is currently being appealed by Shaheeb in the High Court.

Shaheeb Ibrahim previously served as a coordinator at the Ministry of Housing during former President Abdulla Yameen Abdul Gayoom’s administration. Until the drug-related allegations surfaced, he was a prominent activist within the ruling People’s National Congress (PNC), where he also served as a council member.