Maldives ex-president’s money laundering trial begins
The hearing was the first to be broadcast live on television.
21 Jul 2019, 9:00 AM
The public tuned in on Sunday to watch the first televised trial in Maldives history as former president Abdulla Yameen appeared in court for a hearing on money laundering charges.
The 60-year-old opposition leader is accused of laundering US$1 million deposited to his personal account by SOF, a company that was used to funnel the bulk of US$90 million stolen from the Maldives Marketing and Public Relations Corporation during his administration.
He is also accused of violating an agreement made with the Anti-Corruption Commission to hold the US$1 million in an escrow account by transferring the SOF money to an investment account at the Maldives Islamic Bank.
During Sunday’s hearing, Judge Ahmed Hailam dismissed five pre-trial motions filed by Yameen’s lawyers challenging the validity of the charges. None of the arguments made by the defence amounted to reasons not to proceed to trial, the criminal court’s chief judge ruled, declaring preliminary proceedings to be over.
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