The Criminal Court has fast tracked the date of sentencing in the V. Aarah money-laundering case against former President Abdulla Yameen Abdul Gayyoom to June 30th.
Member of former Yameen’s legal team Ahmed Asif said that the changes were brought without prior discussion with the legal team. He also claimed that the decision is the result of influence exerted on the judges by the Judicial Service Commission (JSC) and the government. Moreover, the change to the schedule would mean back-to-back hearings and concluding the trial in haste.
In the most recent hearing, Yameen’s legal team raised concerns that the court was attempting to conclude the case in haste and there was discrimination present against Yameen. However, the presiding judge said there was no discrimination in court proceedings.
Money laundering and bribery charges were raised against the former president, as he is suspected of having deposited funds from the sale of V. Aarah to his personal account and laundered the funds.
