Maldives former president summoned to police, over money laundering case

Former President Abdulla Yameen has been summoned to the Maldives Police Service, for questioning.

Yameen, who had faced multiple allegations throughout his five-year tenure, is asked to present himself to the police headquarters at 2pm on Saturday.

While he is to be questioned over an ongoing investigation, police have not released any information on the matter.

However, police released a statement on the matter following media reports.

“Maldives Police Service is investigating a number of cases filed by state institutions, accusing former President Abdulla Yameen of various illegal financial transactions while in power. Would like to inform that the police is taking all necessary steps in these investigations,” reads the statement issued in Dhivehi.

Progressive Party of Maldives (PPM)’s secretary general, Mohamed Hussain Shareef has confirmed the summon to some local media outlets.

Citing Shareef, online news ‘Mihaaru’ reports that the summon is over the money deposited to the former president’s account during the 2018 presidential elections campaign.

He further said that a “junior staff” at the bank has been summoned over the matter as well.

A money laundering case was filed against Yameen in mid-September, by the Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) at the Maldives Monetary Authority (MMA).

The former president has faced multiple corruption allegations throughout his tenure, including receiving millions of dollars through Maldives Marketing and Public Relations Corporation (MMPRC), the company implicated in the biggest embezzlement case in the Maldives’ history.

The Anti-Corruption Commission had, back in November 2017, confirmed that USD 1 million was transferred to Yameen’s private account through MMPRC.

Al Jazeera had, in 2016, exposed the massive corruption including theft, bribery and money laundering in its award-winning documentary ‘Stealing Paradise’.