Three arrested and remanded in connection with major scam cases
14 ނޮވެމްބަރު 2026 | ހޮނިހިރު 08:39The Criminal Court has remanded three young men into custody following their arrest for alleged involvement in a series of scams. Police investigations have revealed that substantial amounts of Maldivian Rufiyaa and US Dollars were fraudulently transferred into the suspects' bank accounts, and an active investigation into the matter is currently ongoing.
A photo depicting a scam in progress. Police report that such incidents are on the rise. | security magazine
Three young men have been arrested and remanded in custody on suspicion of involvement in a scam.
According to Criminal Court orders, three individuals were remanded in custody on November 13. Those detained are Ibrahim Shareef, 34, of Goldengate, Fuvahmulah; Mohamed Reehan, 34, registered under Dhafthar No. RS 7006, Male'; and Ibrahim Muaz, 38, of Nazumu, Nilandhoo.
All three individuals have been ordered to be held in a custodial prison. The court has remanded Shareef and Muaz for 30 days each, while Reehan has been remanded for 15 days.
The remand orders for the three suspects state that sufficient evidence has been presented to support the allegations, including copies of the emails exchanged between the Maldives Police Service and the bank.
Furthermore, during the court proceedings regarding Shareef's case, police testified that a significant sum of money was fraudulently withdrawn from an individual's bank account. Authorities stated that 10,000 Rufiyaa and 1,000 Dollars from the stolen funds were deposited into Shareef's account and subsequently withdrawn.
However, Shareef testified in court that he had no knowledge of the scam, claiming that he withdrew and transferred the funds only after receiving a call from individuals who stated the money had been deposited into his account by mistake.
During the court proceedings regarding Rehan's case, police testified that 130,000 Rufiyaa had been fraudulently obtained from an individual. They further alleged that Rehan held internet banking access to one of the accounts used to circulate the stolen funds. However, the defense counsel argued in court that the accusations against Rehan were based solely on hearsay.
Regarding the case involving Muaz, police informed the court that he is accused of hacking an individual's account and stealing a significant amount of local currency and US dollars.
Police stated that 66,000 Rufiyaa and 6,500 Dollars had been deposited into his account.
As police continue to investigate these cases, the authorities have recently issued a fresh appeal for public vigilance. This follows a surge in scams involving the unauthorized conversion of SIM cards to eSIMs via stolen OTPs to compromise banking and social media accounts, as well as the fraudulent creation of digital wallets.
