Questionable USD1 mln in Yameen's account handed over to ACC

Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) on Monday declared that former President Abdulla Yameen Abdul Gayoom had handed over the USD 1 million, which was deposited in his private account at Maldives Islamic Bank (MIB), to the graft watchdog before the Presidential Election.

Neither the former president nor ACC had publicly stated before whether the cash in question had been placed under the graft watchdog's care. Yameen had come under fire during the presidential election as well, with the public demanding answers regarding the suspicious deposit.

ACC had revealed that the USD 1 million was deposited to Yameen's account by a private firm, at a time when the former president was accused of being involved in the corruption case of Maldives Marketing and Public Relations Corporation (MMPRC). The largest such scandal in the history of Maldives, it involved the embezzlement of MVR 1.2 billion in state funds via the corporation.

The private firm that deposited the USD 1 million in Yameen's account was SOF, the shareholders of which were also implicated in the MMPRC corruption case.

According to local media Mihaaru, ACC's Vice President Muawwiz Rasheed confirmed on Monday that the USD 1 million is now under the commission's care. However, he declined to provide further details as the MMPRC investigation is still underway.

ACC had previously stated that it had shelved Yameen's case, since the attempts to summon SOF's shareholders for interrogation had failed. One of the shareholders is Mohamed Allam Latheef, who had fled the country soon after the MMPRC investigation commenced.

ACC's report on the case stated that SOF had filed USD 500,000 to Yameen's US Dollar account on October 13, 2015, and another USD 500,000 two days later.

The then ruling Progressive Party of Maldives' parliamentary group leader Ahmed Nihan had earlier declared in March this year, that the USD 1 million was in ACC's possession. However, the graft watchdog had refuted the claim at the time.

According to local media, the former president handed over the money to ACC last July.