Prosecutor General (PG) Hussain Shameem has said that he will not appeal against the High Court's decision nullifying payment of MVR 52 million (USD 3.4 million) in the Vaavu atoll Aarah case against former President Abdulla Yameen.
The Criminal Court ordered Yameen to pay MVR 52 million to the state after he was convicted of bribery and money laundering and sentenced to 11 years in prison.
The High Court on Thursday quashed the order after Yameen's lawyers appealed against money owed to the state. The deadline for appealing such decisions to the Supreme Court has now expired.
PG Shameem told Mihaaru news that the paperwork for recovering the gains was filed along with the case. Although this will not be appealed in the Supreme Court, the prosecution will take note of these issues when the appeal in the Aarah case is heard in the High Court, he said.
"The Prosecutor's Office has not done anything wrong," Shameem said.
According to sources, the Prosecutor General's Office (PGO) sent a letter to the Criminal Court to clarify the procedure to be followed as the court order had not included the repayment. Therefore, the Criminal Court issued an additional order to acquire the payment.
The High Court ruled that the law requires the state to take possession of property and money at the time of judgement. The High Court ruled that it was against the law to order payment under such an order more than two days after the judgement had been passed.
While the order to pay the hefty sum was quashed, the 11-year prison sentence for Yameen remains in effect. The High Court has not yet commenced the appeal hearings.
Sign In