Court acquits Sun companies in MMPRC-linked Fuggiri case
The acquittal of the two Sun companies comes as other cases linked to the MMPRC scandal continue through the courts.
Top Stories
The Criminal Court has acquitted Sun Construction and Sun Investment of money laundering charges linked to the leasing of R. Fuggiri island through the Maldives Marketing and Public Relations Corporation (MMPRC) corruption scandal.
Both companies are owned by Ahmed Siyam Mohamed, leader of the Maldives Development Alliance (MDA) and MP for Meedhoo. The trial was originally conducted alongside that of former President Abdulla Yameen, before the court separated the cases.
According to a senior Criminal Court official, the two companies were acquitted last month. The official said the omission of the sentencing hearing from the court schedule was due to an administrative error and added that no hearings had been held in secret. The verdict is not yet available on the court’s website, and the reasoning behind the decision remains unknown.
The case centred on allegations that Sun Construction and Sun Investment received funds linked to bribes paid through the MMPRC. The prosecution alleged that on 9 September 2015, R. Fuggiri was leased to Classic City Island Holdings Limited, with subsequent transactions intended to disguise illicit payments.
According to the prosecution’s summary:
-
On 29 May 2016, USD 1.1 million allegedly obtained as bribes was paid to Sun Construction via a cheque drawn from an account in the name of Ahmed Krik Riza at the Bank of Ceylon.
-
On 31 May 2016, the cheque was deposited into Sun Construction’s account at the State Bank of India, recorded as a dollar-marking transaction.
-
On 7 June 2016, the funds were transferred internally to an account held by Sun Investment at the State Bank of India.
-
On the same day, an additional USD 1,000 was added, bringing the total to USD 1.18 million, which was transferred to an account in Yameen’s name at an Islamic bank, listed as an inter-company transfer.
While Yameen was charged with accepting bribes and money laundering, Riza, who was accused of acting as an intermediary, had his charges withdrawn by the prosecution due to delays in the proceedings.
The acquittal of the two Sun companies comes as other cases linked to the MMPRC scandal continue through the courts.
