Fuggiri case: Sun Investment pleads not guilty on all charges

Sun Investments pleads not guilty on Tuesday against the charges pressed against them regarding the Raa atoll Fuggiri case.

The company has been charged with money laundering on the grounds that it allegedly provided former President Abdulla Yameen with the funds he needed to bribe another party with USD 1 million over the lease of Raa atoll Fuggiri.

During the preliminary statement, Sun Investment's lawyer argued that the criteria for money laundering were not met by this case, and that there was no evidence to connect Sun Investment's actions with money laundering.

Their lawyer said the company therefore all the charges against it.

The lawyer also requested that some of the documents submitted by the state not be accepted as evidence, as they were obtained after the charges were already filed against the company in court.

The lawyer said that the law makes it mandatory for the prosecution to inform the accused if new evidence is presented, but that the state had not done so.

In response, the state argued that the law allows new evidence to be presented after the case has been filed in court. The prosecution stated that new evidence is shared with the court in a manner that allows for it to be shared with the accused.

The next stage in the case will involve the deposition of prosecution witnesses. Judge Ali Nadeem announced that this hearing would be held next week.

Ahmed "Krik" Riza and Sun Engineering Company are also facing charges in the case, in addition to Yameen, but their part was not heard on the day of the preliminary statement.

Yameen is currently serving an 11 year prison sentence after being found guilty of bribery and money laundering regarding lease of Vaavu atoll Aarah. With the verdict, he has now lost his chance to contest this year's presidential elections.