Male’, Maldives – Former President Yameen Abdul Qayyoom’s lawyers have claimed that the laptop provided to Yameen by the Maldives Correctional Services – to listen to the audios submitted to the court by the state, regarding two charges raised against him – has been bugged.
In the preliminary hearings held today regarding the two charges, which are of money laundering and accepting a bribe, the lawyers of Yameen highlighted that they have not received some of the documents filed to the court by the state, as well as the issues faced in listening to the audios. Further, they also claimed that the laptop provided by Corrections has been bugged, and questioned why Corrections has not allowed the lawyers to take their own laptops to the Maafushi jail in order to prepare for the trial.
His lawyers requested the court to order the Corrections to allow Yameen’s lawyers to be able to use their own laptops in the jail, where Yameen meets with his lawyers, as well as requested that Yameen be seated with his lawyers during the trial so that discussions may be made based on the presentations of the state.
The state supported this notion, and requested the court to allow Yameen’s lawyers to be able to utilize their own laptops in jail, to review the audio files with regards to the case.
At the end of the hearing the presiding Judge requested Yameen’s lawyers to provide a list of documents which the team has not received, so that necessary arrangements can be made, along with an announcement that the next hearing would be held on 6th December.
Yameen is currently serving a sentence of five years for money laundering by crediting one million dollars to be received by the state for the lease of Ga. Vodamula, via MMPRC. The verdict was passed on 28 November, 2019.
Yameen was accused of knowingly depositing MMPRC money to his personal account which he then used to gain personal profits. Witnesses summoned by the state said the former President “surely knows” the money that went into his account was the requisition fee of Vodamulla island, which was leased in his administration by MMPRC.
