Luthufee's extradition: Sri Lanka's AG department yet to give approval

RaajjeMV has learnt that Sri Lanka’s attorney general has been an obstacle in Abdulla Luthufee’s extradition from the country.

A credible source said that while "numerous" work is being done to transfer him back to the country, that there have been numerous obstacles in the matter.

The source said that authorities are working “within Sri Lankan laws" and that the latest obstacle has been its Attorney General (AG) department; it is yet to give the required approval.

Earlier on Wednesday, Ministry of Foreign Affairs revealed that there have been various hurdles in transferring Luthufee.

Luthufee was convicted and sentenced to life in prison over the 1988 attempted coup, but has been in hiding since being granted medical leave in 2010.

He is to have turned himself in to the Maldivian embassy in Sri Lanka, on May 1. This was revealed on June 24.

According to the foreign ministry, the authorities need to satisfy certain legal procedures in Sri Lanka first, but that the fact that he had been hiding in Lanka without a valid visa and his turning himself in coinciding with the search operation launched after the Easter terror attacks have been obstacles in the matter.

The ministry also noted that the previous government’s decision to leave the Commonwealth has led to concerns over the validity of Maldives’ extradition agreement with Sri Lanka.

The foreign ministry added that it "will keep working to fulfill all international and local procedures” to hand Luthufee over to the relevant authorities as soon as possible.