A trial hearing on former President Abdulla Yameen’s money laundering charge has been scheduled for Wednesday, 9:30am.

Testimonies were taken from state witnesses at the last hearing.

The state witnesses included former Vice President Ahmed Adeeb, Head of Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) Muavviz Rasheed, former Head of ACC Hassan Luthufee, former Managing Director of MMPRC Abdulla Ziyath, former Tourism Minister Moosa Zameer, and Bank of Maldives board members Mohamed Luwaiz and Mohamed Shareef.

The court was unable to hear the testimony of former Head of ACC Luthufee, who is in Malaysia and has refused to testify. The state’s attorney stated that, if they are unable to compel Luthufee to testify, the court can accept the 37-minute recording of Luthufee’s police interview as light evidence.

The presiding judge has stated that he will decide on accepting Luthufee’s police interview at the next hearing. Testimonies of the defendant’s witnesses will also be heard at the next hearing. They include former Governor of Maldives Monetary Authority Azima Shakoor.

If found guilty of money laundering, Yameen faces 15 years in prison.