Maldives ex-president summoned to court, handed over case documents

Former President Abdulla Yameen was summoned to the Criminal Court on Sunday, to hand over case documentation on the money laundering charges raised against him.

Prosecutor General (PG) Office had raised money laundering charges against the former president last week. After concluding investigation, police had forwarded the case for prosecution on February 6.

As per the Criminal Procedure Act, case documentations must be handed over to a defendant within five days after official charges are raised against them.

However, the court is yet to announce when the preliminary hearings in the case will commence.

Police is seeking an additional charge against the former president, over an alleged false testimony given to the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) during its investigation of the millions stolen from the state through the Maldives Marketing and Public Relations Corporation (MMPRC).

Yameen has been questioned twice by police since December, regarding the funds deposited to his personal account through Scores of Flairs (SoF), the company used to launder money through MMPRC.

According to a report publicized by ACC on Thursday, the company had deposited USD one million to the former president’s account at the Maldives Islamic Bank.

While the ACC had questioned Yameen over the matter, he is to have provided a false statement to them claiming to have returned the state funds.

Yameen was told to transfer the funds to an ACC-held account at the Bank of Maldives, but later admitted that the money deposited to the account had been obtained from former tourism minister Moosa Zameer. He is to have continued to use the funds from SOF for investment purposes.

Following the release of the ACC report, it was revealed that Yameen’s Islamic Bank account was opened days before the funds were deposited, and that the only other funds deposited to the account were the USD 250 used to open it.

Police has also frozen two bank accounts that belong to the former president, in turn seizing over MVR 100 million.