Charges against Athif withdrawn, advisory agreement signed

Prosecutor General’s Office (PG) has withdrawn the money laundering charges filed against former head of the Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) of the Maldives Monetary Authority (MMA), Athif Shakoor, and entered into an advisory agreement with him.

A senior official from the PG Office confirmed that the agreement was signed after Athif, who currently serves as the strategic consultant at MIFCO, requested a review of his case.

“An advisory agreement has been signed with Athif for a period of three years. If he commits any offence during that time, he will be charged for that offence along with the original money laundering charge,” the official said, noting that such agreements previously lasted six months to one year.

Criminal Court had scheduled a hearing in Athif’s money laundering case for last Thursday, but the PG Office requested the court to formalize the advisory arrangement instead. Therefore, the scheduled hearing was cancelled.

Athif had been charged under the Money Laundering and Proceeds of Crime Act for allegedly failing to report suspicious transactions to relevant authorities. Criminal Court had earlier ruled that the case could proceed to trial.

In his defence, Athif maintained that the Suspicious Transaction Report (STR) analysis, prepared in collaboration with SOF Company, contained questionable data. He said that at the time, the FIU’s focus was on preventing illicit foreign funds, and that under instructions from the then-governor, he decided against forwarding the case for investigation, citing uncertainty about whether police would take action even if a complaint was filed.