The Prosecutor General's Office, on Thursday, charged former Deputy Mayor of Male' City Ibrahim Shujau, with misuse of authority to secure undue advantages.
PG Office Spokesperson Ahmed Shafeeu stated that the case concerning the former deputy mayor issuing a construction license in violation of Male' City's planning regulations was forwarded to the Criminal Court.
If the charges are proven Shujau faces three years of imprisonment, house arrest or banishment.
The Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) sent the case regarding the former deputy mayor the the PG Office on Wednesday, following the conclusion of their investigation.
According to the corruption watchdog, Shujau had approved the development of a 12-metre building on a land plot measuring 250 square feet on January 15, 2014, despite regulations only permitting the construction of structures measuring 6.27 metres on plots of such sizes.
The commission revealed that the aforementioned approval was granted in reference to a document signed by Shujau on January 14, 2014, which claimed that the Male' City Council had issued a permit, in 1995, for the development of a four-storey building on the land plot.
However, ACC asserted that no such permits were issued regarding the land plot in question.
Overall, the watchdog stated that its investigation proved that Shujau knowingly misused his authority as a public official to provide an undue advantage to a third party by issuing a construction license in clear violation of planning regulations.