Shamaan found guilty of all three charges

Former Controller General of Immigration Mohamed Shamaan Waheed has been convicted of three offences: participating in a extortion, abuse of official authority, and money laundering.

The verdict hearing was scheduled for 4:00 pm on Tuesday.  

Shamaan was charged with participating in extortion, an offence that carries a prison sentence of three years; misuse of authority to obtain a benefit, which carries a one‑year sentence; and money laundering, which carries a sentence of between five and 15 years. He denied all three charges.

The Criminal Court on Tuesday ruled that all three charges were proven and found him guilty.

Before entering the hearing, Shamaan spoke to reporters and outlined the allegations he had been making on X. He claimed the Maldives Border Control (MBC) system was being “sold off” to certain individuals under the direction of Home Minister Ali Ihusaan, and alleged that he had been pressured over the matter. He further claimed that Attorney General Ahmed Usham was involved and that President Dr. Mohamed Muizzu was aware of the situation.

Shamaan alleged that the case against him was framed on the orders of senior officials. He claimed that individuals were arrested alongside him to build a case, and that agreements were made with them to prove the charges.

“In short, there is no evidence. There is no evidence against me. This is directly driven by the heads of state. Minister Ihusaan is one of them. Ihusaan and Attorney General Usham are at the forefront of this,” he said.

Senior Government Spokesperson Mohamed Hussain Shareef (Mundhu) on Tuesday denied the allegations made against the President. Attorney General Ahmed Usham also rejected the allegations made against him.

Shamaan’s family had earlier alleged that he was arrested because he intended to expose corruption cases involving Minister Ihusaan, and that he possessed a video related to the matter.