Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) found former Governor of Maldives Monetary Authority (MMA), Aishath Azeema, not complicit in the Maldives Marketing and Public Relations Corporation (MMPRC) embezzlement case.
The corruption watchdog probed MMA's negligence regarding the MVR 1.4 billion MMPRC corruption scandal.
ACC also collected a statement from Azeema over allegations that MMA did not file a case at Maldives Police Service despite being aware of money laundering activities being carried out with state coffers.
However, ACC's investigative report that was publicised on Tuesday, did not implicate Azeema in any of the acts of corruption.
AS Police are still investigating the issue, it remains unclear whether Azeema is free of all suspicion.
ACC's report detailed that there was no documented evidence that Azeema suggested any course of action regarding the investigative report compiled by MMA's Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU).
The commission's investigation did not generate evidence that Azeema influenced FIU's decision to refrain from submitting said report to Police.
Most of ACC's accusations on the situation focused on FIU's former Head, Ibrahim Athif Shakoor. ACC submitted a case to Prosecutor General's (PG) Office seeking to press charges against Athif for undue influence.
However, PG Office advised ACC to submit a separate case to Police, as money laundering was involved in the case and ACC did not have the authority to investigate such crimes.
ACC's report said that the state suffered losses in millions of dollars as FIU did nothing to prevent the acts of money laundering despite being aware of it.
Athif disclosed in his statement to ACC that he informed the then-Governor of MMA Aishath Azeema that the suspicious transaction activity must be further investigated.
He further stated that Azeema refused to submit the case to Police citing the lack of staff in FIU at the time.
Azeema, however, denied these allegations.
According to her, Athif mentioned the 'Suspicious Transactions Report' submitted to FIU on November 27, 2014, after a meeting held at MMA, adding that she urged him to thoroughly investigate the matter.
She further said that since FIU is an independent unit under MMA, it is not her role to actively partake in their respnsibillities and make decisions.
She said FIU never consulted her regarding the cases they investigate.
Furthermore, Azeema admitted that FIU sometimes notified her of their investigations, but it wasn't necessarily to report details on their progress. She said that most meetings wiith FIU were to discuss policies and regulations.
ACC's report stated that there was enough evidence to suggest FIU's negligence allowed money laundering to be carried out with state coffers.
- FIU did not confirm the reasons behind major transactions SOF made via Bank of Maldives Ltd (BML) and Bank of Ceylon (BOC)
- FIU did not look into withdrawals made after a state firm (MMPRC) deposited substantial amounts to SOF's account
- There were no financial statements to indicate whether MMPRC had transferred the money to SOF as payment for any services
- FIU was aware but took no action when SOF refused to provide information requested by BML regarding the money deposited by MMPRC
- FIU had neglected to fulfill its lawful responsibility to forward cases of suspected money laundering to relevant authorities for further investigation
ACC's report stated that revenue generated by the state as acquisition cost from leasing uninhabited islands and lagoons were transferred to SOF accounts and laundered through a wide dollar exchange network.
The report also exposed those who carried out million dollar transactions through SOF.
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