Opposition supporters rallied outside the Malé Prison late Friday night, calling to free their leader, former President Abdulla Yameen Abdul Gayoom.

Yameen was sentenced to five years in prison on Thursday, after being found guilty of laundering USD through the state-owned Maldives Marketing and Public Relations Corporation (MMPRC) via a private company SoF, during his presidency.

While officers of the Maldives Police Service (MPS) dispersed the protesters a while after the opposition gathered outside the priosn, local media reports that three protesters were taken into police custody.

Supporters of the opposition coalition, Progressive Party of Maldives (PPM) and People’s National Congress (PNC) called for the immediate release of their leader.

Prior to the protest, the opposition coalition held a joint council meeting on Friday, announcing that the party does not accept Yameen’s sentencing and guilty verdict. The opposition is to rally across the entire nation.

While the former president is currently being kept at Malé Prison under special protection, the opposition have also expressed concern over the prison's conditions.

The service earlier revealed that media will be informed if Yameen is to be transferred to another location, as political figures were previously detained in special units at Maafushi prison.